It Must Have Been Love
by Ms Puddleglum
Summary: After Candy had discovered Albert's true identity, why did she want to move back to Pony's home despite knowing that she would miss Albert?
1. Memoirs

**It Must Have Been Love**

**by Ms Puddleglum**

**Disclaimer:** Candy Candy and all characters belong to Kyoko Mizuki, images to Yumiko Igarashi and anime to Toei Animation.

**Introduction: **This is a short story which contains only a few chapters. To those readers who have read my other short story "Afternoon Nap" and expressed their wishes to read its sequel, this is it! You can also read this as a standalone though it's more fun to read the prequel first. Just like "Afternoon Nap" was written from Albert's perspective, this was written from Candy's point of view.

I let my imagination run loose while writing this story, which is based on my interpretation of mainly the last volume of the manga version and some spoilers from the Candy Candy Final Story (CCFS), published by Mizuki in 2010.

Please note that I firmly believe that Albert is Candy's destined love (Mizuki sensei had an essay about this), so if you don't agree with that, you might want to pass. On the other hand, if you like this story, I would like to hear from you. Please bear in mind that I reserve my rights to remove any rude or negative comments.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank some Albert fans who are familiar with the manga version and the CCFS spoilers, and I was inspired to write this story through various discussions with them over time. In particular, thanks to my friend, Trastuspies AR, who has confirmed the wordings in her manga version (French) for me and even gave me some new ideas.

Last but not the least, special thanks to my beta readers for their invaluable feedback and effort!

-Ms Puddleglum

**Chapter 1: Memoirs**

"Ladies and gentlemen, please listen," I announced courageously, facing the guests who had dressed in their best for the grand engagement party. "I, Candice White, will not be engaged to Neil Leagan!"

As expected, Great Aunt Elroy was completely taken aback by this sudden change in the course of events. For a while, there was not a sound or a rustle from the guests because nobody in this family ever dared to oppose Madam Elroy in public. It was so quiet in the luxurious ballroom that one could hear a needle fall, and everyone could see that Madam Elroy was fuming right now due to my insolent behavior.

At last, Great Aunt raised herself from the chair to confront me, her voice sounding angry, "What are you talking about?"

I believed in her head she was hollering, _You apologise right this minute, young lady!_

But I was resolute not to take back my words. Just when I was about to defend myself, I heard someone barge in through the French door, and a familiar male voice stated sharply, "What Candy said was true. She will not be engaged to Neil."

Almost instantaneously, Great Aunt Elroy slapped a hand to her mouth, eyes wide with fear. She stammered in a low voice, "William... you are supposed to be in the Villa..."

The look of sheer panic on her face was simply astounding, so all eyes in the room naturally shifted to the unfamiliar, tall and imposing figure with wavy blond hair, who looked incredibly dashing in an impeccable black suit. The guests appeared to be enthralled by this young man because they could tell that his mere presence had significantly perturbed Madam Elroy, which made them all the more curious about who he was.

I knew Albert had promised that he would take care of this forced engagement for me, but I had never expected that he would show up. Moreover, I was just as dumbstruck as everybody else that Great Aunt would react this way at his abrupt appearance.

"What are you doing here?" Neil's loud, stern voice broke the tense silence, catching the attention from all of us. By now, he was standing next to Madam Elroy for support, pointing his finger scornfully at Albert.

In response, Albert advanced towards his aunt with confidence, ignoring Neil's condescending question. Neil couldn't take this insult and furiously bellowed, treating Albert like a tramp, "Go home! This is not your place!"

Needless to say, Neil had no idea whom he was yelling at. Not being observant enough to see that Great Aunt looked rather mortified now, Neil went on, attempting to trash Albert's reputation, "Great Aunt, this is the man whom I have told you about. He had amnesia and lived with Candy before!"

Little had I expected that Neil would give away the fact before all the guests that Albert and I had lived together. In no time they started murmuring something about what they had just heard. I knew I might not have conducted myself with propriety by living with a man in the past, but I trusted that Albert knew how to handle this mess now, so I remained standing at where I was and decided to let fate take its course.

Utterly flabbergasted at what Neil said, Madam Elroy could only turn towards Albert, stuttering, "That is..."

"Yes," affirmed Albert with a serious look, seemingly not affected by what others would think about him. "That's correct. I suffered from amnesia before and Candy was the one who took care of me when I was sick."

"She did...?" intoned Madam Elroy, shifting her gaze back to me with a remorseful look gradually forming on her face.

However, Neil was quite chagrined that Great Aunt still hadn't taken any action about his accusation of Albert, so he impatiently raised a question, "Great Aunt, what is he doing here?"

When Great Aunt spun sideways to face him without a word, Neil continued forcefully, "Please hurry up and throw him out!"

"Be quiet, Neil!" admonished Great Aunt, speaking up at last. "He is-"

But Albert cut her off with a steady voice, "Let me do it myself."

Only then all the murmuring stopped, and the guests sat quietly, waiting for Albert. He pivoted around gallantly and stepped forward a little, introducing himself in an articulate manner, "Ladies and gentlemen, my name is William Albert Ardlay."

His self-introduction as the family patriarch drew audible gasps from all people present in the grand ballroom, except for Great Aunt and myself. Judging by the guests' facial expressions and gestures, they could now understand why Madam Elroy was visibly humbled in front of the young man. I also noticed a stunned expression on Archie's face. His eyes were wide open, pointing at Albert with disbelief. [1] Patty and Annie looked very shocked too.

In panic, Neil ran to his mother, Mrs. Leagan, who looked scared stiff and too astonished to speak. Their scheme was exposed, and the real Uncle William was here to support me. At this moment, I heard Great Aunt ask Albert in a low voice, "Why did you come unannounced?"

Albert answered placidly, clear enough for everybody to hear, "Because I'll never allow my important adoptive daughter to be engaged without my consent."

Great Aunt lowered her head in shame and replied in a voice barely audible to the people around her, "I was going to inform you right after-"

Before she could even finish her sentence, Albert retorted aloud with a very stern look, "That will be too late already!"

Great Aunt could only gape at him speechless, evidently startled by his strong reaction. I had never seen Albert so cross at anybody before, and I whispered his name without knowing, "Albert..."

This was Sir William, not the friendly and gentle Albert whom I was more familiar with. It was plain for all to see that Sir William got extremely offended for Madam Elroy had purposefully avoided obtaining his consent before this engagement party by thinking that she could always inform him afterwards. His open rebuke of Madam Elroy not only signified his authoritative position in the Ardlay's family to all guests present, but also showed that he was willing to stand up for me if necessary, even to his aunt. I was profoundly touched because of that.

Without waiting for his aunt to respond, Albert directed his words to Neil and his family, "Neil, I'm sorry, but Candy should be the one to decide whom she wants to marry." Albert spoke in a peremptory tone, like he was merely informing them of his decision and the Leagans would have no other choice but to comply with his wishes.

Neil was flushed with rage, fully aware that Uncle William was not one to be trifled with. Yet, Neil muttered something to himself instead of responding to Uncle William. Soon, his body seized up and his expression worsened, a look of revulsion crossing his face. Without warning, he rushed to leave the scene as he could no longer stand being humiliated in front of the guests. Eliza, who was noticeably mortified by the whole incident, gave me a fierce glare before she took off after Neil as well. I felt bad for the Leagans, but I was also relieved that my engagement to Neil, thanks to Albert, now known as Sir William, was annulled. Even Great Aunt didn't insist anymore, and the drama was over.

Although the engagement party had somehow turned into the debut appearance party for Sir William, none of the guests seemed to care about the drastic change. They enjoyed themselves very much with the great food that was served as well as the beautiful music currently being performed by the live orchestra. When I was trying to find Archie, Annie and Patty in the crowd after the lunch reception, I overheard some chatter about Albert behind his back, commenting about Madam Elroy's stepping down as the family matriarch because Sir William had finally made his appearance. Some of them were quite amazed that he was this young and handsome when everybody used to think that he was a feeble old man.

Then out of the blue Albert appeared next to me, speaking to my ear due to the loud music, "Candy, would you wait for me by the lake? I'll join you very soon."

I didn't expect that Uncle William, being the head of the family, could sneak out of the party, so I happily obliged and immediately dropped the idea of finding my friends. As I made my way out of the ballroom, I gave him a wink, and he winked back with a smile and remained at his spot. To be honest, I was thrilled that he wanted to meet with me in private. Since the moment George had come to pick me up from the Mountain Lodge yesterday, I had missed Albert very much and just couldn't get his face off my mind, remembering all the nitty-gritty details of how I had come to discover his true identity and the wonderful time we had shared afterwards.

On my way to the lake, while walking through the manicured garden behind the magnificent mansion, I spotted Neil crying in his mother's arms. I was only glad that they didn't see me. Then I overheard Mrs Leagan talking about going to their villa in Florida. It sounded like they would probably stay there for some time. Frankly, I couldn't apprehend what was on Neil's mind, but I was more than relieved that I wouldn't run into him for the next little while.

As I was strolling along the path that led to the lake, even with the afternoon sun high in the sky, I didn't feel hot at all due to the gentle breeze that swayed the trees and shrubs around me. While taking in the beauty and the serenity of the environment, the thought that I was walking on the premises owned by Sir William Albert Ardlay flashed across my mind.

Who could have guessed the carefree young man, namely Albert, that loved animals and enjoyed traveling around by himself was actually the enigmatic Sir William in disguise? Come to think of it, we had been living together pretending to be brother and sister for slightly more than a year before he had disappeared from my life on a snowy night, and only then I had realized that he had recovered from his amnesia already.

I hadn't seen this coming at all because just a few months before his disappearance, Albert had suggested that we should share everything with each other from now on, including anguish and happiness. Being too moved to speak then, with tears in my eyes, I had sincerely nodded my head in agreement. I could readily make this promise to him because I had always been comfortable sharing with him my thoughts and feelings, including the things that I couldn't even tell Annie. I had believed he had felt likewise, that he could share everything with me too.

Yet what had happened? He had decided to leave without a trace.

_(flashback begins)_

I remembered how I collapsed on the floor in tears after reading his departing letter, feeling devastated that he had vanished without leaving any contact information. He had only said "we shall meet again someday".

In the letter he said, "I have caused you trouble", and to my surprise he had left a large amount of money for me as his appreciation. I was quite upset that he had used the word "trouble". Was that what he had felt during his stay with me, that he had given me troubles? Didn't he know it was actually quite the opposite?

At his departure, he had inadvertently taken the feeling of home and comfort with him. Following that night, I no longer felt the same at my place, the apartment which used to be occupied by Albert and me. I was repeatedly afflicted by nostalgia, especially at nighttime when I felt most vulnerable. In particular, I often remembered the evening after he had come home later than usual and found me sprawling on top of the scattered newspapers on the floor in our bedroom. He had scooped me up and carried me to bed in his arms. Then he had apologized in a rueful tone for hiding these old newspapers from me. I had woken up, but I had kept my eyes closed and feigned sleeping. Next, surprisingly, I had felt his warm fingers on my face and through my curly hair, gently wiping away the remnants of my tears and brushing my hair off my face. I could also feel the heat radiating from his body at our close proximity, his scent enveloping my senses. All the while his touch had been so soothing, and I had taken solace knowing how much he had cared about me.

Every time when this incident resurfaced in my mind, it was nearly impossible for me not to shed tears. In any case, I had lost count of how many uneasy and sleepless nights I had spent yearning for him to come back, crying myself to sleep, and curling up on his pillow in the lower bunk bed - previously his bed.

Even in my waking hours, whenever I recalled the delightful moments that I had shared with him, it often evoked a profound tenderness inside me, remembering how we could easily finish each other's sentences and intuit each other's mood without even speaking.

I must acknowledge that I had never shared such a deep emotional connection with anyone else in my life. As I came to realize that Albert was someone special and no longer just a big brother to me, I strongly desired to know if he and I had the same sentiments.

This led me back to the question of when exactly he had recovered. In his departing letter he wrote, "thanks to you I've regained my memory; however… I never had the courage to confess", which implied that he might have kept me in the dark for quite some time already. Based on our original agreement, we would live together until his recovery, so was it plausible that he had preferred to stay by my side?

When I reflected upon the past few months, I couldn't believe that I hadn't suspected a thing at all. Yet after pondering the obvious changes in Albert's lifestyle ever since he had quitted that dishwashing job, I became certain that he had probably recovered when he had informed me of his new job at the zoo as an animal consultant. Since then, he had been so busy that he had to leave so early to work and buy dinners for us almost every day, working even on Sundays. When the rumors about him being a member of the gangsters had begun circulating, I had discovered that he had lied to me about working at the zoo. Confused, upset and wounded, I had resolved to trust him nonetheless, despite feeling uneasy about where and how he could get his extra bonus of money from time to time.

I also recalled that when Albert had proposed to share my happiness and anguish with me in the countryside, he had just bought an old used car because of his so-called new job at the zoo. If my guess was right, then his memory had already returned back then. In the months following that day, being so busy himself, I hadn't had many chances to talk with him like we used to. Yet in his spare time, he had always been very caring and affectionate to me. For instance, I still vividly remembered how he had consoled me after Stear's tragic death by sitting together with me high on a treetop, putting his arm around me and letting me lean on him.

Putting all these into perspective, I couldn't stop myself from believing that he had special feelings for me too. However, I couldn't comprehend what had essentially made him decide to leave me after he had eavesdropped my conversation with the landlady. Hadn't he also heard that I was going to move out with him because I had trusted him no matter what the others had said about him? I knew he must have heard me say that because in his letter he had appreciated my trust in him.

These thoughts and unanswered questions were driving me crazy. Yet what exasperated me most was that I had a feeling that Albert was deliberately hiding from me.

_It must have been love... But it's over now..._

_..._

_Lay a whisper on my pillow,_

_leave the winter on the ground. _

_I wake up lonely, there's air of silence _

_in the bedroom and all around. _

_..._

_Touch me now, I close my eyes and dream away. _

_..._

_It must have been love but it's over now. _

_It must have been good but I lost it somehow. _

_It must have been love but it's over now. _

_From the moment we touched 'til the time had run out. _

_..._

_Make believing we're together, _

_that I'm sheltered by your heart. _

_But in and outside I've turned to water _

_like a teardrop in your palm. _

_And it's a hard winter's day, I dream away. _

_..._

_It must have been love but it's over now,_

_it was all that I wanted, now I'm living without._

_It must have been love but it's over now,_

_..._

_It's where the water flows, _

_it's where the wind blows [2]_

However, I chose not to open up to anyone about the intensity of my feelings for Albert, but I believed Dr. Martin could sense it. One day when I was idle in Happy Clinic, I sat down to draw a portrait of Albert myself. After Dr. Martin had laughed at my lousy, childish drawing, he offered to draw one for me, which was amazingly realistic. Later, while walking in the snow on my way home, I compared his drawing to mine carefully. A feeling of deep yearning promptly filled my heart, and I even considered asking Dr. Martin to draw many for me so that I could post them everywhere in the neighborhood.

Since Albert had gone that winter night, days had turned to weeks, and weeks to months. I still hadn't got any news from him. Then, on a fine spring day, I saw a parcel at my front door when I came home after work. As I picked it up, I recognized the handwriting right away, and I hastily checked who the sender was just to make sure. I was overjoyed and relieved to know that Albert had contacted me at long last, giving me a beautiful spring outfit. At the moment I read his brief note, "Candy, you are on my mind wherever I go", I was beyond delighted because his note hinted that he missed me too. So I determined to track him down simply based on his sending address, believing that was a clue from him. I had no idea where Rockstown was, but I earnestly wished that he would be there waiting for me to come.

I had to admit that I was getting desperate to find Albert. Other than the fact that I longed to see him again, I was dying to find out the answers to the questions in my mind. Thus, I bought the train ticket and headed to Rockstown as soon as I had got approval from Dr. Martin. Since Albert had sent his parcel from there, someone in the post office must have seen him, so I brought his portrait along, the one drawn by Dr. Martin. I was full of hope to meet Albert again in Rockstown, and I put on the spring outfit because I wanted him to see me wearing his gift.

But to my great astonishment, on my way to the post office, I saw a big sign with Terry's name outside a filthy and miserable tent, a temporary theatre. Caught with disbelief, my feet brought me inside the tent. The trenchant smell of cigarettes and alcohol was suffocating! I hadn't waited for very long before Terry came out, apparently drunk. He was barely able to stand on his feet on the wooden platform, let alone act. I could scarcely believe my eyes, and tears were pouring down my cheeks nonstop. Was this really the same young man whom I had once loved? The one who had performed in the extravagant theatres in Chicago and New York?

Inevitably, the thought that Terry was in denial because he couldn't forget his love for me crept into my mind. As all sorts of my past memories with him came flooding back, I nearly collapsed. But before long, I firmly reminded myself that I had done the right thing by breaking up with Terry, even though it had been one of the toughest decisions in my life.

How could I ever forget that night on the hospital rooftop? In the midst of blizzard, at the moment I had attempted to stop Susanna from jumping off the roof, the painful truth that she had lost her leg for Terry had hit me like a blow unto my chest.

Soon after that, I had witnessed how Terry had rushed back from his premiere for Susanna and how he had carefully carried her in his arms returning to her room. All these had confirmed my thinking - Terry had already chosen Susanna over me. After having some serious contemplation alone, I had made up my mind to give up Terry fully aware that if I had insisted to keep my relationship with him, I would have given him a hard time. Putting up a fake smile on my face, I had told Terry about my decision, and he had conceded without any protest. Right then, my heart had been shattered into pieces, unable to accept that he could let me go just like that, albeit crying at the last moment while embracing me from behind. His tears had torn me apart, knowing this had been the last hug we would ever share. His final words to me were "promise me that you will be happy".

Since the breakup, how much pain had I gone through forcing myself to forget Terry? Thanks to Albert for staying with me throughout this distressing stage. Without his support, I couldn't imagine what would have happened to me during those difficult times.

All of a sudden, Terry's loud and confident voice brought me out of my reminisce, and it was obvious that he had sobered up for some reason. When I heard the applause from the audience, it was more than comforting to see that Terry was back to his old confident self, a natural actor on stage. Hence, I reckoned it was time for me to leave because I had no intention to stay and talk to him. After all, I had promised Susanna not to see him again.

Instead, I spoke to Terry in my mind that he didn't belong here, and he should go back to Broadway and to Susanna. She was the one who really needed him by her side. So I quietly left the tent, genuinely wishing happiness for both of them, because I would be happy if they were.

As soon as I could breathe the fresh air outside, I remembered my original mission of coming to this town. I wiped my eyes and determined to find Albert. While heading to the post office, I was startled by a woman calling my name from behind. As I cautiously turned around, I found Terry's mother, Miss Eleanor Baker.

I didn't expect that she could recognize me, and she even invited me to go to a restaurant with her. She confided in me about Terry's prolonged depression and how much she had worried about him because of that. I could feel her pain, and the anguish of seeing her son suffer must have been unbearable.

Interestingly, Miss Baker was very certain that Terry had seen me just now even in that dim light condition, and that explained why he had suddenly sobered up. I honestly didn't want to take that credit at all, and I wasn't quite sure about her intention of telling me all these. Didn't she know that Terry had already been engaged to Susanna? Perhaps Miss Baker had misunderstood that I had come to Rockstown for Terry. If so, she was totally wrong. I had come for someone who meant so much to me. He had helped me a lot in the past, and I dearly wanted to meet with him again.

Nevertheless, I had strong faith that Terry would eventually wake up from his nightmare and go back to Broadway, pursuing his lifelong dream. Therefore, not long after that, I decided to bid Miss Baker goodbye and left the restaurant. Unfortunately, the post office had been closed, so I began searching for Albert early next morning all around the small town, starting from the post office first. I showed his portrait to almost everyone I met on the street, but none of them could recognize his face.

On my way back home on the train, no words could describe my disappointment and frustrations. I kept asking myself where Albert could have gone and why he had sent his parcel to me from this small town?

Then something struck me. Albert was trying to lead me back to Terry! In a sense, seeing Terry again was a significant step to me, as though I could close this chapter in my life. Yet I felt forlorn contemplating why Albert had arranged this meeting. Did he want me to reunite with Terry? Why else had he done that?

Another month had passed since the trip to Rockstown, and I still hadn't heard from Albert. I felt even lonelier than before because I had given up the hope that he would ever show up in my life again. I simply couldn't accept why he seemed to have cut all ties with me. I hated living all alone in this apartment, where I could easily remember my time with Albert nearly everywhere.

One day, feeling heartbroken and desolate, I saw a bunch of kids playing outside the apartment building, carrying some fishing equipment with them. At that instant, I made up my mind to move back to Pony's home or somewhere near there so that I could visit my mothers frequently. Just then, I heard someone knocking on my front door.

My heart skipped a beat as I wondered if it could be Albert on the other side of the door-the moment I had been waiting for months. I held my breath as I opened the door. Unfortunately, it was George who came to pick me up to see Great Aunt Elroy. Later, I learned about my forced engagement to Neil.

Great Aunt coldly informed me that it was Uncle William's order. My tears and my distorted views of my adoptive father must have compelled George to disobey Sir William for the first time in his life, and he was kind enough to instruct me with details about how to find Uncle William in the Lakewood Villa without being noticed by the household staff.

I believed my first meeting with Uncle William would forever remain the most shocking moment in my life. I was absolutely stunned when I heard his voice, the voice that I could recognize anywhere. As he stood up and spun around to face me, I was paralyzed and thunderstruck to say the least, staring at the familiar silhouette against the glaring early morning sunlight pouring into the solarium.

When my eyes gradually adjusted to the bright conditions, I could finally see his handsome face, the one that had haunted me in my dreams. He looked dazzling in his elegant black morning robe with black pants, which couldn't hide his impressive physique. His blond hair practically shone in the sunlight, his soft eyes gazing at me.

Hot tears escaped my eyes as I slowly registered the fact that Albert was the one who had adopted me years ago. Based on all my previous encounters with him, I had never once suspected that he was my legal father. I had regarded him as a big brother before, but never a father. A few moments later, Albert broke the silence by apologizing that he had lied to me in the past, smiling genially at me after that. Yet he remained standing at where he was, keeping a distance between us.

For a long time I couldn't speak at all as my brain was still processing the shocking truth.

How many times had I dreamed about meeting my adoptive father? Only to discover that he was the one I had been pining over the past few months. I had also fantasized many times about meeting Albert again prior to this meeting, wishing that we would run into each others' arms in jubilation, just like the time when he had found me in the middle of nowhere after I had successfully escaped from Neil.

Now my hope was dashed, and I couldn't quite explain my mixed emotions. Looking back on my memories, Albert was the one who had helped me go through some tough stages in my life. He had always been there for me, especially when I had been sad or in trouble, giving me the solace and companionship. Therefore, I was truly elated to know that Uncle William was in fact Albert. On the other hand, I no longer had the courage to ask him the questions that had been bothering me during his absence. How could I possibly ask my guardian whether he had romantic feelings for me?

As more and more uncontrollable tears poured down my cheeks, I started trembling. When Albert informed me that he didn't know anything about the engagement between Neil and me, my legs failed me without warning, and I collapsed onto the carpeted floor as though I had lost all my strength. He immediately rushed to my side to help me get up. When our gaze met, I couldn't believe my eyes. He looked even more charming than I had remembered, his striking blue eyes watching me ever so tenderly. In my shaking voice, I finally spoke up and asked him why he had hidden his true identity from me all this time. He sincerely apologised again but didn't answer my question directly.

Kneeling right beside me, Albert was so close yet so far. Could he tell how much I desired to lean my head against his chest and embrace him like I always did before? But I restrained myself from doing that due to our awkward relationship now. Instead, with tears streaming down my face, I continued to gaze into his sapphire eyes as he regarded me compassionately, seemingly affected by my tears. After a while of staring at each other, he unexpectedly stood up to his full height and left me sitting on the floor, kindly offering to pour me a cup of tea. Despite being startled by his odd behavior, I couldn't help but question if he was trying to hold himself back from me as well.

After I had fully calmed down, I wished to express my heartfelt gratitude to Albert, addressing him as Uncle William, but my speech was interrupted. He gently held my hands and told me to stop because he said that he was feeling embarrassed. At that instant, I was a little taken aback. Why didn't he want me to continue? Was embarrassment the only reason or was it something else?

Then he explained that he had always wanted to be the free-spirited Albert, even though he knew his life was bound to be William, the family patriarch. I perceived that he still wanted me to regard him as Albert, the man I had always known.

Later, he told me some stories about his beloved late sister, Rosemary, Anthony's beautiful mother, as we toured around the villa together, starting from the rose garden first and visiting Archie's stone gate and Stear's water gate next. This place was full of precious memories to me, so I reckoned it must be quite painful to Albert because some of his loved ones had passed away. At least from the way he talked about Anthony, I knew how much he had regretted for not doing much for Anthony during his short life.

When I saw the swan boat at the water gate, one of Stear's inventions that had broken down long time ago, I was a bit surprised. Albert told me that he had fixed it and even invited me to have a ride with him on this boat.

But we ended up getting soaked to the skin because the swan boat accidentally malfunctioned on our way to the Mountain Lodge, where we had first met near the waterfall. To dry our clothes, Albert gave me a blanket to wrap myself with; he simply took off his shirt and put a towel around his neck. We sat side by side in front of the fireplace to warm up ourselves.

This reminded me of the moment when Terry and I were sitting in front of a fireplace in his family villa in Scotland. As if Albert could read my mind, he casually brought up the news about Terry, informing me that he had gone back to Broadway according to some tabloids. I was genuinely happy for Terry, and deep inside I recognized that time and distance had undoubtedly driven us apart.

Just then, the thought that Albert had known about my trip to Rockstown flashed into my mind. Unfortunately, I couldn't bring myself to probe him why he had sent me that parcel. I was certain that no matter how I broached this subject, I would end up telling him my deep feelings for him, and I wasn't sure if he wanted to know now.

Although Albert and I were hardly clothed, I felt a mixture of embarrassment and shyness. Being a gentleman, he hardly looked at me and resolutely remained focused on keeping the fire in the fireplace by poking the logs occasionally. Likewise, I avoided looking at him directly because I had rarely seen him shirtless even though he had lived with me for more than a year. How could one imagine a good-looking young bachelor with an athletic build like Albert having a teenage daughter like me?

While we were both gazing at the fire quietly, I spoke up, telling Albert that George was the one who had taught me how to find Uncle William in Lakewood with specific details. A chuckle escaped his lips as he poked the log with a stick. He remarked, "That's what I have figured too. I will definitely thank George when I have a chance."

"Me too," I whispered.

When we exchanged a quick glance right after that, his eyes, sparkling from the glow of the fire, captivated me. Instantly, the memory of the moment when he had first shown his beautiful eyes to me years ago came back to me, and I couldn't tear my eyes away from his face. As he returned my gaze, my pulse sped up and I could feel myself starting to blush.

Then with a tender smile spreading across his face, he simply said, "Candy, I think our clothes are dry enough now."

When we got changed in separate rooms, I asked myself whether it was inappropriate that I found Albert attractive. Honestly, I hadn't known that he was my guardian until today, and no doubt I had developed strong feelings for him already. I couldn't just forget him, and I knew that I didn't want to either.

With a heavy heart, I came out to meet Albert. He kindly asked me, "Candy, what's your plan for tonight?"

"Oh my goodness! I have no idea!" I exclaimed. Since my sole mission of coming to Lakewood was to appeal to my adoptive father to cancel the engagement, I didn't even plan where I was going to stay the night.

While I was clearly at a loss for words, staring blankly at Albert, he offered with a sincere smile gracing his lips, "Would you like to stay here with me then?"

Upon hearing his invitation, my mood lightened up. I promptly agreed without any hesitation because I couldn't be happier anywhere else! He seemed delighted at my response and suggested, "Let's make our dinner together then, Candy. I believe you must be hungry by now because I'm starving myself! I haven't eaten much since this morning-"

I cut him off, clapping my hands eagerly, "Hurray! I haven't tried your cooking for a very _long_ time!" I intentionally stressed the word 'long'.

Albert cast me a contrite glance, heaving a deep sigh. "I'm sorry, Candy. I had no choice but to leave..."

He abruptly broke off, hesitating. Soon, he composed himself and resumed his previous topic, "Candy, shall we begin fixing our dinner?"

After that, Albert went straight to the kitchen. I trailed after him, helping him out with the preparation. Being busy, he was unusually quiet, presumably absorbed in thought. Meanwhile, I let my mind drift back to what he had mentioned earlier about having no choice but to leave me. I could hear from his troubled tone that it had not been an easy decision for him.

Only then it dawned on me why he had vanished that winter night a few months ago. The moment he had regained his memory, he had remembered the adoption. Since then, he might have gone through some serious emotional struggles if he had indeed had feelings for me, and this situation had likely lasted for a while until he had overheard my heated argument with the landlady at Magnolia. Perhaps after hearing the rumor about him being a gangster and that our neighbors had already figured out that we were not real siblings, he had finally listened to his conscience and decided to leave me for good without causing me further problems.

If that was the case, it made sense to me now why he had not contacted me at all the whole time except when he had tried to lead me back to Terry. He had probably wanted to forget about his feelings for me so as to snap himself out of his inner turmoil.

Having these unsettling thoughts in my head, though purely based on my speculation, I felt upset, wondering if Albert had already achieved his goal after all this time without me by his side. At the same time, I contemplated how to get the answer to this burning question in my head.

For the time being, Albert was so preoccupied with cooking that he didn't know that I was observing him. When he sensed that he was being watched, he stopped what he was doing and smiled at me, asking, "Candy, could you please pass me that cutting board over there?"

He acted as if he didn't know that I had been watching him. Then he gave me instructions of what to do to assist him in the kitchen. Meanwhile, he casually told me that whenever he had longer breaks in between his business trips, he would retreat to this Mountain Lodge himself to spend a night or two to enjoy nature and independence. He had already let the household staff know beforehand that today would be one of those days, so that was why there was enough food in the pantry for him to cook whatever he liked.

"Do you come here by boat too?" I asked with a small smile, trying my best to distract myself. At least I should feel honored that he had taken me here to join him at his retreat.

He shook his head and said, "Actually, the answer is no. I usually come here by walking along the river, enjoying the scenery on my way."

"So why did you fix Stear's swan boat?" I was curious.

"I don't know. Maybe I figured it was a waste leaving it in the storage?" he ended with a bright smile on his face.

"I think so too, Albert," I agreed with him right away.

After a brief pause, his smile transformed into a smirk as he continued, "By the way, George was right that I like to spend my mornings in that solarium, and the household staff would not disturb me at all."

I swiftly responded, "But you got an intruder this morning!"

He burst out laughing, and I joined him soon afterwards. It had been a long time since we last had a hearty laugh together.

When our laughter faded, I inquired with a serious face, "Please be honest with me, Albert. Have I disturbed your solitude? Would you rather be alone?"

His expression changed almost imperceptibly. Fixing his eyes on mine, he seemed to struggle for words. While waiting, I was getting apprehensive about what he was going to say to me. I truly wanted to know why he had brought me here to this Mountain Lodge, his own haven. Did he really enjoy spending time with me or was he just being polite? The last thing I wanted to hear from him was that he wanted to nurture the father daughter bond.

A moment later, he chuckled and diverted his eyes back to cooking. "Quite the contrary, Candy. I am more than glad that you have shown up today and accepted my invitation to join me here." His voice was level and even friendly, but no emotion was evident.

When I was pondering what had made him hesitant just now, Albert changed the topic by telling me that one of the male servants would come in the morning to check just in case he was in need of anything. Most of the time, Albert would kindly send the servant away, but this time he would leave a brief note for the servant to contact George on his behalf.

"I will ask George to come here tomorrow afternoon, and I'm sure he will understand the reason why I have asked him to come. In any case, I don't want the servants to know that you're here with me," he finished with a matter-of-fact tone, watching me with a determined look.

"Why? What's wrong?" I didn't take offense, but I didn't quite understand him either.

"You're too innocent, Candy." His face broke into a sweet smile, and he patiently explained to me, "I don't want anybody to know that we are together just by ourselves, except for George. Most of the servants don't know that you're my... my..." He stopped thoughtfully and threw me a fleeting glance before he continued, "Ok, they don't know about our relationship."

I was relieved beyond words when I learned that he was clearly reluctant to say that I was his daughter, just like I didn't want to think of him as my father. When I was about to thank him for being considerate, he suddenly asked with concern, slightly creasing his eyebrows, "Do you trust me?"

So he actually treated me as a lady! I answered with a firm voice, "Of course! Albert, I have always trusted you, so you need not worry about that," I assured him with a wide grin on my face. After all, we had shared the same bedroom as siblings for more than a year and he had always been a gentleman.

"Thank you, Candy," he replied with a sigh of relief before he shifted his focus back to preparing the dinner. Then he remarked without looking at me, "I know I could have introduced you to the servants, but not today. Maybe next time when you come again."

I was intrigued by what he had told me, which indicated that he had weighed his options and still decided to spend time with me alone, at least for one day, without prying eyes all around us. I knew for a fact that we had to observe etiquette when the servants were with us, which neither of us enjoyed very much. Yet the thought that Albert had asked me to join him in his haven meant a lot to me and made me feel that I was someone very special to him, especially because it was supposed to be a time for him to enjoy his freedom and to be away from everybody else.

I must admit that I had enjoyed a marvelous time with Albert from that moment on. We were soon back to our old selves, treating each other like we used to as if time had not separated us at all. After having a great dinner outdoors while enjoying the glorious sunset, we came back to the Mountain Lodge to rest. Albert suggested that I use the only bed in the lodge and he would sleep on the couch right beside it. At first, I did try to protest, joking that I shouldn't use his bed, but he insisted. Soon enough, I gave in to my exhaustion. It had been a long day for me, and I had no problem drifting off to sleep, feeling content that I had reunited with Albert at last. As a matter of fact, it had been a long time since I last had a wonderful and deep sleep.

After spending the night with Albert and his animal friends inside the Mountain Lodge, he took me to his favorite places around the area the following day, doing all sorts of fun outdoor activities together. In sum, I hadn't felt so alive and enraptured in months, and these two days would definitely become some of my fondest memories in my life.

As a matter of fact, I enjoyed Albert's presence so much that I didn't really care what we did as long as he was there with me. Later, I even suggested making two long flower chains, one for him and one for Pouppe, as my souvenirs for them. After collecting all the flowers that I needed, Albert told me in a sorrowful tone that he hadn't had much sleep the night before, so he wanted to take a nap while I was working on my little solo project.

He lay down just behind me and fell sound asleep before long. Since I knew that George would come to pick me up shortly, I tried my best to work as fast as I could. Thinking about George, it suddenly occurred to me that he might have sensed Albert's inner conflicts too. Or had Albert confided in him? Anyway, Albert must have contacted George soon after his recovery and resumed working in the family business even though he had chosen to stay with me on the outskirts of Chicago. That was why Albert had to work so hard everyday, and it also explained why our neighbors had seen him with other men with black suits and he had extra income from time to time.

So the normally tight-lipped George had opted to disobey Sir William to disclose his whereabouts to me, fully aware that Great Aunt Elroy had misused his name. When I would meet with George later, I would thank him with all my heart, although no words could fully describe how grateful I was to him by leading me back to Albert.

Sleeping soundly, Albert appeared so peaceful, handsome, and even boyish. I looked at him with tenderness in my heart, and the warm feeling that coursed through my body was telling me that I wasn't gazing at my brother or my father, but a man whom I was in love with. Yet I was still unsure how Albert felt about me; I certainly hoped that my feelings were not one-sided.

At least I could see that he had enjoyed my company a lot as well, and nothing he did implied that he regarded me as his daughter at all. In fact, neither of us had ever mentioned our adoptive relationship again, but I couldn't deny that we both showed some reserve and restraint. Whether intentionally or not, we avoided getting too close to each other physically, except for now when he was napping right behind me.

With wishful thinking, I thought perhaps Albert couldn't take the first step to confess because he was supposed to be my guardian? Should I let him know my feelings then? Since I had no clue when I would see him again, this could be my last chance now. Soon, an idea came to my mind.

After I had finished my exceptionally long flower chain for Albert, I woke him up from his nap. As he reluctantly opened his eyes, he appeared dazed from his deep nap. He even slapped himself awake and rubbed his face roughly. A few moments later, he propped himself up on his elbows, but he slightly ruined the shape of my flower chain.

So I asked him to lie down again such that I could fix it. When I was done, he was visibly astounded to see my finished product. The chain formed a heart shape with myself encircled inside and most of the chain rested on top of his body.

While he was speechless, possibly still reeling from the shock, I asked him chastely, "Do you like it?"

That was the best I could do to express myself, but then we both heard the honk right after this. George was already here for me, and I knew I had to go. I wanted to ask Albert whether I would see him again, but I believed he would show up if he wanted to. I figured that my message to him was clear enough.

_(flashback ends)_

Therefore, when I saw that Albert had come to the engagement party today to deal with Great Aunt Elroy for me, I felt deeply moved. It showed that he truly cared about me because he was supposed to enjoy his break in between his frantic business trips.

Just then, while walking along the lakeshore, I happened to spot a strong tree with sturdy branches, and I couldn't resist the urge to climb despite wearing a delicate gown. Once I got near the top of the tree, the spectacular view was breathtaking! I believed when Albert came later, he would be glad to join me to admire the beautiful lake behind the magnificent mansion from a high spot.

Or would he behave like Uncle William? Albert certainly had acted very differently at the engagement party earlier as someone who had the absolute authority in the family. What would the guests say about Sir William if they saw him sitting on a tree branch like an unrefined teenager? Well, if Sir William had to keep his image untarnished, I could always climb down.

When I was anticipating whether Albert had something specific to say to me, I realized that I hadn't written to my mothers at Pony's Home for a long while already. It was about time to give them some updates. In particular, I would describe how I had met my adoptive father and how he had come to my rescue from the forced engagement.

Needless to say, I wasn't going to tell them about my feelings for my guardian. First, I didn't want my mothers to worry about me. More importantly, I myself was very confused about my relationship with Albert. I wished he hadn't referred to me as his "important adoptive daughter" when he was talking to Great Aunt in front of all the guests. I knew it was true, but it hurt my feelings nonetheless. I had a feeling that this was his way to protect me from vicious gossip because of Neil's accusation of us living together in the past.

Ultimately, I wanted to find out what Albert thought about us or our relationship deep in his heart.

_Who am I to Albert?_

(to be continued...)

=o=o=o=

**Author's note:**

I felt so inadequate when I attempted to describe how Candy discovered the true identity of Albert and her subsequent reactions. It was a shocking moment for both of them, and yet very romantic and even bittersweet. No matter how much effort I had put in, I still had the feeling that I hadn't done enough to capture the essence and the beauty of this episode in the manga.

Also, I know there is something different about this encounter in Candy Candy Final Story, but I prefer the one in the manga version way better.

**Footnote:**

[1] This is extracted from Candy's letter to Archie in the Candy Candy Final Story, which is different in the manga version.

[2] "It Must Have Been Love" by Roxette (1989).

=o=o=o=

Revised: June 1, 2012

Revised: March 31, 2013 (amendments here and there)


	2. Doubts

**Disclaimer:** Candy Candy and all characters belong to Kyoko Mizuki, images to Yumiko Igarashi and anime to Toei Animation.

My characters include Ruby, Mr. Jacobson and his family.

**Note: **I would like to express my sincere appreciation to those readers who have taken their time to write positive reviews or send me words of encouragement, or those who have added this story to their favorites. I hope you will enjoy reading this chapter as much as I have enjoyed writing it. Please drop me a few words if you do, even in your own language!

Please bear in mind that I reserve my rights to remove any offensive comments.

Again my heartfelt thanks go to my beta readers for their suggestions and effort!

-Ms Puddleglum

**Chapter 2: Doubts**

In the past few months, my longing for Albert had made me feel very lonely and melancholic, but when I was in his presence again, I felt upbeat, energetic and satisfied. I was also at ease with myself. There was no need to pretend to be somebody else because he practically knew me inside out.

Besides, I couldn't deny the tender feelings in my heart. I truly felt deeply connected to him and never grew tired of him, even after hours of spending time together. He always managed to make me feel safe, protected and most of all cherished.

But again, who was I to him?

I wondered how he had felt when I had shown him my heart shaped flower chain after his nap yesterday. He certainly had been shocked into speechlessness then. Was this the reason why he wanted to meet me by the lake now?

I hadn't waited long in anticipation before my hearing caught the sound of his voice, calling my name. When I saw Albert searching for me not too far below, turning his head from side to side, I was so excited that I unhesitatingly invited him to join me up here, albeit fully prepared that he was going to inform me that he had to behave himself in his own residence.

Therefore, I was thrilled when Albert readily accepted my invitation, loosening his tie eagerly while taking off his suit jacket. Once he hung them on one of lower boughs of the tree, he climbed up with caution, striving not to ruin his clothes. So even now he was still the same boyish man whom I had had a fabulous time with yesterday. Presently, he bore little resemblance with the man who had stood up for me at the engagement party. Just now, he had to put up a straight face, dealing with his aunt and Neil tactfully without compromising his position or diminishing his authority.

By the time Albert reached the bough where I was, I stuck out my tongue in a silly manner, telling him that my dress had regrettably got ripped. Flashing me a resigned smile, he told me that the same thing had happened to his fine shirt too, and that was one reason why he'd rather not wear this kind of expensive clothes.

After he had settled down right beside me, he put his fingers in his mouth and let out a piercing whistle, drawing attention from those birds which were resting on the tree top high above us. When they heard his call, they willingly came down and flew around his outstretched arm, bringing their warm greetings. His radiant smile even attracted one of them to perch on his hand.

While Albert was having fun with the friendly birds, he jokingly remarked that sometimes he wished he could work on a tree.

"Candy, I love nature more than great wealth and high prestige. So when I was younger, I always thought of escaping from this family," he said to me in a casual tone, still frolicking with the birds. What he had just said made me feel that I was someone special to him because he was comfortable in sharing his inner thoughts with me.

"But Great Aunt Elroy is already old, and..." my voice trailed off when I realized that Albert must have known this better than anybody in the family.

As expected, he responded ruefully, "Yes I know. It's time for me to change my ways and be responsible for my family too."

He paused and breathed out a troubled sigh, staring at the lake looking dejected. I was more than glad that he trusted me enough to let me see his weak side, especially he was usually the strong one who had always consoled me and given me strength in the past.

At the same time, I sympathized with him deeply. He had appeared so powerful and authoritative in front of all of us earlier, but knowing him so well, I believed he'd rather be a nobody, who could freely choose to do whatever he liked in his life. He must have felt confined with the burden of being the head of such a prestigious family.

All of a sudden, his face contorted into a grimace of dismay, mimicking Great Aunt Elroy's tight-lipped, long-faced expression. Then he crossed his arms in front of his chest and snorted, sounding coarser than usual, "Actually, Candy, do you think that I'll end up like my aunt?"

His imitation made me giggle nonstop. In between my giggle fits, I muttered, "Oh no... not at all..."

I was so sure that he would never behave like Great Aunt, who didn't seem to know how to relax or enjoy life. Albert looked amused, his face breaking into a wide grin and his blue eyes sparkling mischievously. Leaning himself against the tree trunk to face me, he snickered while raking his hair with his fingers, "That's an answer full of tact!"

Blushing at the thought that despite our adoptive relationship, he still treated me like his long-term friend and confidante. I remarked with a chaste smile, "It looks like you will work on a tree one day for real!"

In next instant, his grin turned into loud laughter. Meanwhile, Albert could nearly pass off as a young lad and reminded me of our good old days when he looked so himself and carefree. I genuinely enjoyed his company, feeling that we had been closer than before after spending lots of time with each other in the last two days. While I was deep in my pondering thoughts, reminiscing our unforgettable moments in Lakewood, I didn't realize that he had stopped laughing and was regarding me quietly, his lips curling up into a warm, sweet smile. I forced myself to meet his eyes, inwardly admiring his charm and extreme good looks. Yes he was Uncle William, and yet he was much younger than I had thought and just as awesome as I had imagined.

While his tender blue eyes were locking mine in their gaze, I could sense the warmth growing quickly deep inside me, my heart pounding hard. Albert had never looked at me this way before, which gave me intense hope that he was going to tell me something I wanted to hear.

_..._

_Do you feel my heart beating?_

_Do you understand?_

_Do you feel the same?_

_Am I only dreaming?_

_Is this burning an eternal flame?_

_..._

_Say my name sun shines through the rain_

_A whole life so lonely_

_And then you come and ease the pain_

_I don't want to lose this feeling _[1]

Unfortunately, the mood was shattered by a voice right below us. "There you are, Candy and Al... ummm... Uncle William! We have been searching for you everywhere!"

I must admit that I was sorely disappointed at the interruption, but these were my friends, so I shouldn't act sourly at all. Then I heard Albert say this aloud, "Candy, shall we climb down to join them?"

As soon as we were down, while Albert was putting his tie and jacket back on, Archie made a small bow to him with respect, saying, "Uncle William-"

Albert cut him off, his hand landing firmly on Archie's shoulder. "Archie, just forget about that formality and call me Albert like you used to."

Although Albert was smiling, Archie swallowed hard and appeared hesitant, exchanging dubious glances with Annie and Patty. Then I spoke up cheerfully as an attempt to remove their doubts, "Archie, Annie and Patty, he is still Albert to me!"

Yet Annie timidly expressed her concern, "But he's also your guard-"

"Yes I know that, Annie," I interrupted her, sounding a little impatient, and Annie immediately threw a swift glance at Archie.

"Anyway, Great Aunt Elroy wants to see Candy," said Archie. "Guess what? She said that you two must be together hiding somewhere."

Albert and I stole a quick peek at each other. Frowning, I repeated after Archie just to make sure, "Great Aunt Elroy wants to see me?"

Archie simply nodded with a charming smile spreading across his pretty face. While it was natural that Great Aunt would want to find Albert, why did she want me? Judging by Albert's puzzled expression, he didn't seem to have any clue either, so he questioned with curiosity too, "Did Aunt Elroy tell you why, Archie?"

Archie answered with a shrug, "Well, she didn't tell us, but I believe it's something very important."

That sounded dreadful enough, and I couldn't help feeling apprehensive. Then Archie kept on talking to Albert, "Oh, of course Great Aunt Elroy is also looking for you, Uncle Will-"

As soon as Archie noted a feigned glare from Albert, Archie blurted out, raising his hands in mock surrender, "Ok, ok! Albert!"

Albert gave him a smile of approval, patting his shoulder. "That's better, Archie!"

So Archie resumed, "Albert, Great Aunt is not feeling well, and she wants to let you know that the guests are leaving soon."

That meant that Sir William should return inside to attend them, so I gently nudged his elbow and uttered, "Albert, I think you should not let your guests down."

Albert looked at me and suggested, "Candy, will you come with me then?"

Actually, we were already slowly heading back together by now, so Archie proposed, "Albert, you go right ahead. I will take Candy to Great Aunt Elroy myself."

Annie promptly echoed, "Yes, we will all accompany Candy."

Patty nodded quietly too.

I chuckled sarcastically, teasing myself, "You all sounded like Great Aunt is some monster that I can't face myself."

Albert responded with an exaggerated sigh, "I thought you knew by now, Candy!"

Then we all burst into laughter. While I might appear normal to them, I was in fact getting more and more anxious inside, wondering what was so urgent and important that Great Aunt wanted to see me right now even when she wasn't feeling well, as though she wanted to take the opportunity that Albert would be busy with the guests. Would she give me a hard time because of the fiasco earlier at the engagement party?

It didn't take us very long to arrive back at the mansion, and a male servant came to meet us, bowing to Albert. "Sir William, Madam Elroy has retreated to her room already and is waiting for Miss Candice."

Albert nodded at him and turned to me with a serious look, giving me his advice, "Candy, please promise me that no matter what my aunt says, don't make any decision without talking to me first. Ok?"

I made my promise at once, giving him a reassuring smile. Then he walked away from us, striding confidently across the hall to attend his hosting duty. As Archie watched Albert leaving, he kindly asked, "Candy, are you ready now?"

So we trudged up the stairs and headed to Great Aunt's bedroom together. After we knocked on the bedroom door, it was swung open, and a maid greeted me politely, "Miss Candice, Madam Elroy would like to see you alone."

Archie instantly spoke up on my behalf, "Ruby, we have promised Miss Candice that we will keep her company-"

He was interrupted by Great Aunt's voice from inside, "Ruby, is that my dear Archie? That's fine! Let them all come in together. We have enough room for up to ten people here in my antechamber."

Thus, Ruby stepped backwards to let us in. We saw Great Aunt sitting on a luxurious sofa, her back facing us, so we went around to greet her one by one. When it was my turn, she beckoned me with a surprisingly pleasant voice, "Candice, come and sit down next to me."

If she were harsh to me as usual, I could easily defend myself with boldness, but now I felt lost, unsure of how I should react. At this instant, I saw that my friends were also stupefied by Great Aunt's atypical and peculiar behavior. Then, I heard her warm and inviting voice again, "Candice, why are you hesitating? Just make yourself comfortable, will you?"

Hence, I braced myself and sat down beside her; Great Aunt gestured Archie and the rests to sit on another sofa facing us. While offering us an exquisite selection of cakes, pastries and chocolates, she ordered Ruby to pour tea into our cups.

For the first time in my life, even though Great Aunt wasn't smiling, her features were softened nonetheless. I found her behave like a dear grandmother to me, which was absurd to say the least, especially I knew for a fact that she had always disliked me. I inserted a piece of delicate chocolate into my mouth while pondering what she had in store for me.

"Ruby, that's all I want for you now." So Ruby made a quick bow and left the room, closing the door behind her. Then, to my great astonishment, Great Aunt gently patted my hands and spoke to me in an appreciative tone, "Candice, first and foremost, I would like to express my most sincere gratitude to you for taking care of William when he was amnesiac and lost."

I dipped my head in reverence, saying, "Great Aunt Elroy, I owed Albert my life, and that was the least I could do to him."

"Yes, William has told me that..." Then she abruptly raised a skeptical eyebrow and inquired incredulously, "Albert? Is that how you call your father?"

I looked into her eyes bravely and patiently replied, "Yes! I have always known him as Albert, and he doesn't want me to change even now."

While Great Aunt furrowed her eyebrows in reproach, Archie defended me, "Great Aunt Elroy, Uncle William has told me to call him Albert too!"

Right after that, Annie and Patty also voiced their opinions to support me. Great Aunt clicked her tongue and shook her head disapprovingly. "This is not proper! I must talk to William about that."

Then Archie continued to explain, "Annie, Patty and I can testify that when Uncle William suffered from amnesia, none of us had the slightest idea who he really was! Except Candy, we had all met him for the first time at the Blue River Zoo in London before his accident, and that was all we knew. We fully supported Candy to help Albert...um... Uncle William back then to recover from his memory loss."

Great Aunt let out a small breath without saying anything for a long while, presumably lost in some deep thought. This must have been the most confusing afternoon in my life. First, the forced engagement was dramatically called off due to Albert's interference, and later he asked to meet me in private, apparently floundering to tell me something in his head. Then, Great Aunt Elroy, who had bluntly expressed a few times how much she wanted Uncle William to disown me, suddenly treated me as though I had always been someone very dear to her, like Eliza for example. At any rate, I had a strong feeling that it was not my imagination that she was just pretending to be kind to me. In other words, behind her surface hospitality was some scheming intention.

My train of thoughts was broken by her warm, disarming tone, "Candice, to prove that I have truly accepted you as the adoptive daughter of my dear William, I would want you to move in today."

While I was disagreeably surprised to hear that, Archie exclaimed, his eyes brightened with excitement, "Isn't that great, Candy?"

Annie clapped her hands cheerfully, saying, "That means we can see each other every day from now on!"

"Yes!" affirmed Patty. "How wonderful, Candy!"

Great Aunt looked extremely pleased and added, "That's right! In fact, one of the better rooms with the view of the lake have been prepared for you already, Candice, and I have directed the butler to assign a maid for you as well."

It sounded like they had fully expected me to agree to this arrangement without any reserve. Of course I would like to see my friends frequently, and I would give anything to be able to stay close to Albert again, but I abhorred the idea of living under the same roof with him as his adoptive daughter. I was also aware that if I agreed to move in, I basically accepted that role in his life, which was the last thing I wanted.

The ever sensitive Archie cast me a troubled glance and kindly asked, "Candy, you don't look very eager, why?"

Before I had a chance to explain myself, Great Aunt spoke up, "Well, Archie, Annie and Patty, I want to talk to Candice privately. You see, I have been very nice to her so far, haven't I?"

After they had looked at one another for a moment, they fixed their eyes on me with consternation. Then Great Aunt asked, "What's wrong, Archie? Don't you trust me?"

With courage, I said to them, "It's fine, my friends. I can stay with Great Aunt myself."

Great Aunt Elroy nodded to them with gladness as they reluctantly raised themselves from the sofa one after another. When they were leaving, they couldn't stop from looking back at me over their shoulders with worry written all over their faces. I tried my best to smile at my friends though I felt like I was sitting on pins and needles.

After we heard the door click shut, Great Aunt regarded me for a few seconds before she asked, "Candice, do you know you're turning into a beautiful woman?"

This was utterly unexpected. Shaking my head, I was rendered speechless and felt the color rise to my cheeks.

She sighed and remarked, "Neil is head over heels for you, Candice."

I lowered my head in response and prepared myself for a reprimand or disciplinary action for my insolent behavior during the engagement party. Great Aunt must have felt humiliated by the way my engagement to Neil was annulled. She probably thought Albert and I had ganged up on her, so she had sent all my friends away so that she could punish me now.

However, she abruptly changed the topic, "When William recovered and contacted George and me, he promised that he would resume working with George on one condition. That is, he wished to stay with his friend who had saved his life for a little longer, residing on the outskirts of Chicago. All the while both George and William had kept the secret from me that he was living with a woman."

While I maintained my embarrassing silence, she took a quick peek at me before she calmly took a sip from her cup of tea. Later, gazing at something far away, she kept on mumbling as if talking to herself, "I did offer to reward his friend with a generous amount of money, but he turned me down and insisted on living with his friend in an apartment, which was really beyond me. But according to George, William had worked much harder than before, and I was only glad that William had kept his promise, thinking that he had finally fulfilled his role in the family. Besides, William did pay me visits from time to time, giving me his interim reports. In any case, it was my oversight for not investigating into his private life."

The regretful tone was clear in her voice. For a few moments, Great Aunt Elroy appeared deep in thought, bringing the cup to her mouth and taking several long, slow sips. After that, she spoke to me with a solemn face, "When Neil disclosed the fact that William had been living with you for a long time, I determined to talk to William. So after the reception, I directly asked him in confidence about his relationship with you."

I tensed up immediately and thought in a flash, _what did Albert tell her? _

She scrutinized my face carefully until I felt like cringing. I wondered if she could hear the furious thumping of my heart. Then she continued with a long sigh, "I was beyond relief when he swore to me that you two had remained pure while living together, treating each other like brother and sister."

"It's true! Albert has been a real gentleman!" I affirmed wholeheartedly.

"Candice, for Heaven's sake, you should stop calling him Albert! Don't you know he is your legal father?" she rebuked and gave me a glare.

"But he..." I gulped. While I tried to come up with a fitting riposte, she carried on her monologue, "William also told me that although he had long left your side, you had only discovered his true identity in Lakewood two days ago, is that right?"

"Yes," I managed to reply in a voice barely audible.

She pursued, "Has he ever told you why he decided to leave you?" Her eyes were intent on me and almost piercing, as though she were using them to penetrate through my thoughts.

I shook my head helplessly. Then she bellowed in a stern voice, "Because he finally came to his senses that whatever he had been doing was inappropriate and unacceptable!"

At that remark, I whirled sharply to face her, aghast. _Did Albert say that? Or was it just her speculation? _

As a matter of fact, what was inappropriate and unacceptable? That Albert and I had lived together or that we had developed feelings for each other or both? Obviously she was suspicious of the true nature of our relationship, and she had openly expressed her disapproval.

Suddenly, her gaze softened and a smile grazed her lips. "Starting today, Candice, I assure that you will be treated like a princess in this mansion, and I would see to it that you will be introduced to the eligible young men out there so that you will be married to the best of them when you're ready."

"No!" I vehemently protested, shaking my head vigorously. It dawned on me that Great Aunt had seen through me and already figured out that I had strong feelings for Albert. So she wanted to make known to everybody that I was merely the adoptive daughter of Sir William, and she would monitor me such that I could not possibly advance my relationship with him beyond that. In the meantime, she would also do her best to marry me off as soon as possible.

Noting my strong reaction, she peered at me in a quizzical manner, cocking her eyebrow. "No? Why not?"

At that moment, I answered her inwardly, _because I am not your puppet!_

However, I strived to pull myself together and keep my cool in order not to lose this battle. When I was sure my voice was level enough, I said to her, "With due respect, Great Aunt Elroy, I'm afraid I have to decline your generous offer."

There was a heavy silence as we regarded each other for a long moment. Then out of the blue, she narrowed her eyes and inquired, "Does William know your feelings?"

I could only stare back at her, nonplussed, because I honestly wasn't sure about the answer. At my startled silence, she murmured, "I see."

She then surveyed me with a look of warmth that was edged with sympathy. After shaking her head and heaving a deep sigh, she remarked, "Candice, you see? I am a woman too. I understand how you feel."

I couldn't believe my ears. Though I was suspicious, I couldn't stop a surge of wild hope blooming inside me. But at this moment, she shockingly held my hands and implored with me in an affectionate tone, "If you love him, let him go. Don't you want the best for him? Don't you see that being the sole heir in the Ardlay's clan, he should only consider a well bred young lady from a reputable family as his lifelong companion?"

I withdrew my hands from her grasp at once, unable to make any response other than averting my eyes from her. Her words had destroyed my silly optimism, and I blamed myself for being so naive to have false hope in the first place.

Great Aunt pressed on, "Candice, has William told you that you look a bit like his late sister, Rosemary? I have known them both ever since they were babies, and you don't know how much William adored Rosemary. So I believe when he recovered, he wanted to continue to protect you, treating you like a little sister, especially because he had been lonely most of his life."

I felt turmoil inside me upon hearing that, and I continued to keep mum, avoiding her eyes. Without giving me a respite, she added, "Even though he might have succumbed to your charms before, it's highly likely that he has moved on with his life and got past his foolish actions by now! After all, he decided to leave that apartment and come home to us months ago, right, Candice?"

Once again, words failed me as I tried to analyze what she had been telling me so far. In fact, her last declaration was exactly the biggest question in my mind. I was totally aware that there had been no news from Albert at all during all those months except when he had sent me that parcel, which was a solid proof that he was trying to forget me. Perhaps that also explained why he had attempted to lead me back to Terry.

Great Aunt Elroy ordered, "Candice, look at me."

I complied absently, and she gave me the final blow, "Didn't William just announce to everyone in the engagement party that you were his important adoptive daughter?"

She ended her question with a complacent smile curving her lips, and the wrinkles around her eyes deepened. The painful truth struck me right in my face. My mind was in a whirl, filled with dreadful doubts; my stomach threatened to revolt. I felt as though something were choking me to prevent me from saying anything.

At last, she concluded in a placid tone, "Being the beautiful daughter of Sir William is like living in a fairy tale. You can forget about working in that dilapidated clinic or making ends meet. The members of the high society in Chicago will soon notice your existence. Rest assured there will be suitors lining up for you before you know it."

She took a short break here to make sure I was still paying attention. "Candice, believe me, once you're happy with your new life, you will be able to put this whole nonsense behind you in no time."

For some reason, my mind drifted away to the past when George had rescued me from my trip to Mexico. Nothing could describe my euphoria when I had known that an extraordinarily rich uncle had adopted me. The days that followed, living together with Anthony, Archie and Stear in the Lakewood Villa, had been incredible and wonderful, which had made me feel like living a sweet dream. Suddenly, the thought that I would be a fool not to accept Great Aunt's settlement propped in my mind, telling me that what she had proposed made perfect sense indeed. Yet there was a tiny voice at the back of my mind, warning me that it was her attempt to bribe me into acquiescence.

With all these mixed messages inside my brain driving me insane, I jumped and whipped around at the sound of a knock on the door. Within seconds, in came a handsome, chivalrous gentleman of high upbringing. He was Sir William Ardlay, who looked somewhat different from the free-spirited Albert in casual clothes whom I was more familiar with.

As Great Aunt spun around to face him, he greeted her, "Aunt Elroy, are you feeling better now?"

"Much better, William!" she answered cordially. "So all guests have left already?"

He simply nodded with a smile, sitting down on a delicate chair close to his aunt. Then she praised him, her voice warm with affection and pride, "Do you know many guests were quite impressed by your handsome appearance and gallant manners? Some have even asked me about your marital status and later expressed interests about introducing you to their friends' daughters."

"Is that right?" he asked nonchalantly like he couldn't care less about the guests' compliments, but I had a strong feeling that Great Aunt was actually speaking to me.

"So where are Archie and the ladies?" Albert politely questioned while sweeping his glance across our faces. He paused to observe me with genuine concern. I figured that he must have noticed that I didn't look too well.

"Oh they had been here a little bit before I sent them away," she answered with a matter-of-fact tone and resumed only after Albert had shifted his focus back to her, "You see, I got something to discuss with your daughter alone, William."

"So what have you been talking about?" he questioned in a relaxed tone, attempting to ease the apparent tension between us, and swiftly added, "I hope I'm not interrupting."

His aunt spoke to him warmly, "Oh no! Quite the contrary. I'm actually glad that you have joined us!"

At this moment, she suddenly faced me with a soft gaze, asking, "Candice, if I'm not mistaken, you're turning eighteen soon, right?"

Without really waiting for my response, she brought her attention back to Albert. "Can you believe that your daughter is of marriageable age soon? So we are in the middle of talking about her prospect for marriage."

A frown instantly creased his eyebrows. Albert cleared his throat distinctively and firmly countered, "Aunt Elroy, I don't think it's the right time to discuss Candy's marriage arrangement. You should remember that she just escaped from one today."

Noting the obvious dismay on his face, Great Aunt Elroy unexpectedly conceded right away, "Very well, William. No problem. She's your daughter after all."

The fact that she kept referring me as Albert's daughter was extremely irritating, and I believed my annoyance must have been visible on my face. Right now, she took her time to look at me, then looked at him, and back to me. "So now, Candice, are you ready to see your room?"

I guessed she thought she had successfully convinced me to change my mind, and I couldn't help but shoot a glance at Albert, who appeared confounded. He promptly demanded, "A room for Candy? What do you mean?"

Great Aunt reproved him with a surprised look on her face, "My goodness, William! Aren't you going to receive your daughter into your house? So I have prepared one of the best rooms to welcome her home, and it is on the same floor as your master bedroom."

Albert was at a loss for words, casting me a concerned glance. Undoubtedly, Great Aunt Elroy did this to push him into a corner because it would be quite strange if he disagreed with her now. His countenance plainly manifested the perturbation of his mind, and I wondered if he had the same sentiments about the implications of my moving in.

Just as expected, Great Aunt Elroy watched him uncomprehendingly and asked, "William, is anything wrong?"

He promptly recovered and remarked with a shrug, "Oh, nothing is wrong, Aunt Elroy."

Then with his tender eyes fixed on my face, he stated, "But I want to hear what Candy thinks-"

Great Aunt Elroy impatiently cut in and inquired with a doubtful expression, "William, are you serious? You're not going to send her back to that apartment, are you?"

He mildly retorted, "Let's hear her out, alright, aunt?"

She seemingly agreed. While they were patiently waiting for me, what Great Aunt had tried to picture to me what my future would be came to my mind. I could easily imagine myself wearing impressive gowns attending various socialite gatherings as the daughter of Sir William, and I could also envision Albert dancing with different beautiful young ladies, one of them would eventually be his future bride. Then, as soon as the image of him kissing his bride in his wedding popped up in my brain, I felt the sharp pain in my chest as though a knife had just plunged itself into my breast.

"NO-!" I cried out passionately, feeling the tears burning in the back of my eyes. My throat was choked with emotion.

Albert was completely caught off guard by my outcry; he barely managed to whisper my name with a puzzled look, "Candy?!"

In an instant, I resolved not to make a scene here, so I forced myself to regain my composure by taking some deep breaths. Without looking at Albert directly, I spoke up when I believed my voice would not betray me, "Uncle William, please pardon me. This is not my home, and I would like to go back to Magnolia now if you don't mind."

"What's the matter, Candy?" he asked as he leaned forward and regarded me probingly, apparently shocked by the cold way I had addressed him.

At this moment, Great Aunt peered at me with disappointment. "So I suppose you do not wish to move in here, Candice?"

I wasn't sure if she was genuinely disappointed, but I simply nodded at her. Then I hastily excused myself and flounced out as I couldn't wait to escape from this suffocating room. When I crossed the threshold of the room, I heard Albert's agitated voice inside, "Aunt Elroy, what did you say to Candy just now?"

I didn't hear her response, and I found that I didn't care anymore. I just wanted to go home and hide from everybody, including Albert. As I rushed down the flight of stairs, he was calling my name, but I ignored him because I wasn't ready to face him yet. I knew I needed time to sort my feelings for him first. As I could hear his footsteps catching up behind me, I tried to speed up, but he put a strong hand to my elbow to stop me when I reached the landing.

Then he gently spun me around, and his eyes widened in disbelief when he saw the tears streaming down my face. Could he tell these were the tears resulted from my pent-up frustration?

He continued to stare at me for a moment or two, troubled eyes searching mine. Next, he pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and extended it toward me. "You might need this, Candy."

I thanked him with a weak smile and started wiping the tears myself. Right then and there, how I wished I could fling myself onto him and cry in his arms just like I did many times in the past, but Great Aunt's words rang in my ear, _he has got past his foolish actions by now... he told everyone that you were his adoptive daughter..._

Later, his kind voice brought me out of my stupor. He gently requested, "Please give me the privilege to take you home."

I urged myself to turn him down if I valued my sanity. I didn't know how long I could continue to suppress my emotions, and yet I couldn't bring myself to say no to him. The next thing I knew I agreed by nodding my head.

The bustling hallway was suddenly quiet as we walked past the startled servants, who were busy cleaning up after the grand reception at the ballroom. They promptly stepped back a little to make way for us, but at the same time they couldn't help but throw curious glances our way. Maybe my eyes appeared puffy from the crying?

On the ride home, we were both quiet. While Albert stayed fully focused on driving, I started reminiscing my past as I gazed through the window. Ever since I had met him near the waterfall, he had always been ready to give me a helping hand or a shoulder to cry on. As my guardian behind the scene, he had respected and supported me in the decisions that I had made since the adoption, even after I had quit St. Paul and determined to pursue a nursing career instead.

But now, after meeting with Great Aunt, it opened my eyes to see that I hardly knew him at all, especially about the other side of him known as Sir William, a man who was veiled in mystery. I used to think that I knew Albert very well, but now I started to question that myself.

At this moment, I unconsciously stole a peek at him out of the corner of my eye. This was the first time I saw him driving an elegant car that looked practically brand new, and I didn't even know how many luxury cars his family had. Even Neil and Archie drove their own cars. Considered all the Ardlay's businesses and properties everywhere, I had to painfully admit that Albert and I were in two different worlds, and being his adoptive daughter didn't close the gap in our statuses unfortunately.

_If you love him, let him go. _Great Aunt Elroy's voice rang in my ears again. Perhaps she was right. I should wish nothing but the best for Sir William, whose future wife should be a real lady born and raised in an esteemed family worthy of his stature.

"Candy, are you alright?" His question snapped me back to reality, and only then I realized that he had already pulled the car into a stop near Happy Clinic. I returned a faint smile at him, asking, "Why did you stop here?"

"I can tell that you were so absorbed in your thoughts just now that you didn't hear me at all," he gently retorted, smiling rather wryly.

I looked sulkily down at my own lap. He pleaded, sounding worried, "Candy, my aunt must have said something that upsets you. Please be honest with me."

I slowly shook my head, diverting my eyes from his gaze. I wasn't ready to give Albert the details of my conversation with her. In fact, it hurt just to recall what had transpired in that room. Besides, how could I tell him that he was the main reason why I was depressed?

He let out a deep breath and shrugged in resignation. Then as he came around to open the passenger door for me, he remarked, "I have parked here because I want to walk home with you. It's been a long while, and I do miss this neighborhood."

_A long while indeed... you left me on a snowy night, and now the flowers are blooming..._

Evening was already beginning to fall, and we walked together in pensive silence, his fingers barely touching my arm in a protective gesture.

While walking up the stairs in the apartment building, Albert spoke up, "Candy, regrettably I cannot stay long as I have to go back to the mansion."

I simply nodded without saying anything. After passing me a swift glance, he commented, "I thought you would ask me why."

"Ok. Why?" I asked dryly.

A perplexed look came into his eyes for a moment before he gave me the reason, "During the reception today, my aunt introduced me to one of our long term business partners, Mr. Jacobson. He invited us for dinner at his house tonight to meet his children, who have all studied in London. In fact, I have thought of inviting both you and Archie to come with me because I was told that his youngest son had just finished his college education, and he had studied at St. Paul's Academy before too."

A gloomy thought instantly appeared in my mind, _so Albert will likely introduce me to this young man as his daughter. Really, what do I expect? Mr. Jacobson was in the engagement party and he knew who I was... Wait a minute! Is Albert also thinking of marrying me off too?_

Feeling even more dejected, I was aware that we had already arrived at my front door, so I said, "Thank you for taking me home. You can go now."

With a stunned expression, he questioned, "Aren't you going to let me in, Candy?"

As I inserted the key into the door lock, I came up with an excuse, "I'm tired. It's a long day for me. Plus, aren't you supposed to head home now?"

"I still have time, but of course if I'm not welcome, then-"

I cut him short while shaking my head sullenly, "No, Albert! Please don't say that!"

After peering at me thoughtfully for a few seconds, he inquired in a saddened voice, "Candy, why are you holding out on me?"

I finally lost it at that instant and cried in an anguished voice, "Yes! But so are you!"

He stared at me with wide, incredulous eyes as I pulled away with a sharp intake of breath, slapping a hand to my mouth. "Sorry... I'm so sorry, Albert!"

In the next instant, I pushed the door open and dashed inside, flinging myself down onto a chair by the dining table. I didn't really know what had happened to me, and I couldn't quite describe the strong emotions that agitated my mind right now. Was it the dashed hopes that resulted after meeting with Great Aunt Elroy? Or was it the frustration trying to adjust my relationship with Albert? Who was he to me now? I felt so confused and heartbroken; my spirit was crushed.

Right then, I couldn't hold back any longer, so I broke down, burying my face in my hands, and sobbed heavily. He came in quietly and switched on the lights. I heard the door click shut, and he headed directly towards the kitchen to pour us drinks. Then, he put a glass on the dining table and sat himself down on another chair. While waiting for me to calm down, I heard him gulp down his drink and set his glass back on the table.

After what felt like a long time, my crying gradually dwindled, and he kindly passed me the glass of water and told me in his soothing voice, "Candy, you're right. I'm sorry for not being totally honest with you either..."

I looked up at him, astounded. _Is he going to inform me what Great Aunt Elroy has been trying to convince me this afternoon?_

He looked at me with a soft gaze and continued, "Aunt Elroy was right, I'm supposed to receive you into my-"

I interrupted him brashly, "I don't want to hear that anymore."

He appeared a little discouraged and spoke in a tired voice, "Candy, I've been struggling to tell you this myself, so would you please let me finish?"

I bit my bottom lip and told myself that sooner or later I would need to face the hard truth, so I yielded to his pleading. I said in a low voice, "Fine. Please go ahead."

He began, "Candy, you could probably see that I was reluctant to agree with Aunt Elroy just now about asking you to move in. My main concern is..."

He paused to observe me for a few seconds before he let out a long, deep sigh. Later, he unhurriedly raised himself from his chair and began pacing around the pleasant but shabby living room. Before long, he stopped by the window to peer outside through the glass when he resumed talking with his back facing me, "Remember I said I thought of inviting you to come to dinner with me tonight?"

"Yes," I answered him, striving to stay calm although my pulse started to race, getting anxious about what he was going to say.

Without moving much, he continued looking outside, murmuring, "But soon I dropped that idea when realization hit me... you probably didn't want your life to go down this path."

"What do you mean?" I was quite alarmed to hear that, so I stood up and approached him slowly.

He pivoted around to face me and explained with a straight expression, his eyes unwavering and his hands digging down in his pockets, "Once you get involved with Sir William Ardlay, you may no longer enjoy your freedom as much as before. You may even have to give up what you want to do in your life, struggling through the old fashioned family values and traditions, because even I can't change those. While I have no choice in my life being born into this family, I don't want to force this burden on you [2]."

"Albert..." Profoundly moved, I didn't know what else to say right now and remained standing at where I was. Whether he had strong feelings for me or not, what he just said showed that he still cared about my well-being very much. Knowing me more than anybody else, Albert could discern that I wouldn't be satisfied with living like a typical upper class lady, who would have a light education in a prestigious school and huge allowances to be spent in shopping sprees and parties, likely to be married off at an early age to a rich gentleman in the same class.

Then I said to him in a sorrowful tone, returning his gaze, "Frankly, I have taken things for granted and have never thought about any of that..."

I broke off as I remembered Great Aunt's words. Although she didn't explicitly mention it, I believed she would want me to quit my current job right away because I knew how much she detested the idea that I worked as a nurse, supporting myself financially.

Fixing his eyes on me, he continued with another sigh, "I decided to adopt you years ago because I wanted to give you a better life, not a life that entraps you."

But didn't he, as Uncle William, support my decision of working before? Had he changed his mind somehow? Was he telling me now that being an Ardlay meant giving up my career and possibly my other pursuits in life?

With these unsettling thoughts in my mind, some birds happened to fly by the window. So Albert pushed the window panes wide and looked up at the evening sky, uttering in a reflective tone, "As much as I want to escape from this kind of life, I can't do that because I have carried loads of responsibility on my shoulders being the sole male descendant."

I recalled he was essentially talking along that line when we were up sitting on the tree by the lake, so he might have planned to tell me all these back then. Presently, he turned back to me and said in a resigned tone, "Candy, in a sense, I am not the same carefree man whom you used to know anymore."

As he let his astonishing words sink in, there was thick silence and tension in the air as we continued staring at each other while keeping some distance between us. When I tried to process his statement about him being different, the way he had rescued me from being engaged to Neil earlier today came back to me now. I recalled how contrasting he could be when he had to act like the authoritative family patriarch, and I realized how little I knew what his world was like. However, when he was alone with me sitting on the tree, wasn't he just the same man whom I had known for years? What about the fun time we had spent together near the Mountain Lodge? He had been so cheerful, informal and relaxed as usual.

Before long, I understood what he meant. "Albert, are you saying that you are no longer the penniless, free-spirited vagabond who liked to travel and loved being with animals?"

He affirmed, sighing, "Yes, it's about time for me to take up my role in the family."

While I tried to take it all in, he kindly inquired, "Candy, are you angry that I have kept my true identity a secret all this time? If so, please forgive me."

I shook my head without saying anything. That wasn't what was bothering me right now. A few moments of silence later, he remarked, with his striking blue eyes full of concern, "I know my aunt very well. I'm sorry to say that she is in fact a calculating person, so she must have a reason to meet with you alone today."

While I remained quiet, he took a short break before he asked me in his tender voice, "I bet she gave you a hard time, Candy. When I went into that room, you looked very pale. Did my aunt make you do anything against your wish again?"

"Not really," came my brief answer. Then I lowered my eyes in regret and muttered, "Albert, I'm sorry for losing my temper just now."

He remained mute for a moment. As I took a glimpse of him, he was regarding me with puzzlement, knowing that I had dodged the subject. Since it wasn't the right time for me to talk about his aunt now, I was relieved when he spoke up at last, "No worries, Candy. I have my fault too. I should have opened up to you earlier."

Raising my eyes to meet his, I managed a strained smile at him. "Albert, I truly appreciate that you are being honest with me..."

My voice trailed off as I suddenly understood his subtle message. He was probably telling me to forget about him because he wasn't the same anymore. But I repressed that disheartening thought for now and changed the topic again, "Actually, I forgot to thank you for taking care of the forced engagement for me this afternoon."

"Don't mention it, Candy." Then he turned serious and said, "In fact, I should apologize on behalf of my aunt. After today, I believe she will not oppress you again because I will not let her."

_She won't oppress me all right, but what she did to me this afternoon was not far from that..._

Yet I was very touched by his words. Aloud I uttered with a faint smile, "Hopefully."

Then he checked the time and murmured, "It's getting late..."

However, instead of leaving, with a nostalgic look on his face, he began to let his wistful glance wander around the living room until his gaze was caught by a portrait pinned on the wall. He advanced toward that picture, and his face gradually relaxed into a smile as he looked at the image that had arrested his attention. I couldn't stop feeling bashful because that was my childish drawing of his likeness.

Soon, he snickered pleasantly, "I like this guy even though he's not handsome."

Standing close to him now, I softly retorted, my mood somehow lightened up too, "Who said he's not handsome? Of course he is."

He whirled around, surprised happiness brightening his eyes.

Then I added, "Well, his eyes are like yours too, a nice shade of blue."

"Are they?" he asked, smiling with glee. "May I take this picture with me, Candy?" he politely requested.

Unable to believe my ears, I objected, "Oh please don't. That's the only portrait I have ever drawn!"

He playfully responded, "That's exactly the reason. I want to keep it because you drew that."

"How did you know?" I was honestly dumbstruck, striving to keep my growing embarrassment from showing.

With a smirk on his face, Albert answered by pointing to his head, "My instinct told me so."

"No, you can't be serious that you want my drawing!" I uttered, shaking my head. "Anyway, let me show you a much better one. Just wait a minute here!"

So I scurried to my bedroom and came back to him with Dr. Martin's drawing in my hand. When I showed that to him, he was bewildered and gazed at me for a moment or two.

"Is that me as well?" he asked doubtfully before staring at the portrait in his hand again, his expression was a mixture of shyness and disbelief.

"Yes," I replied in a low voice embarrassingly. So he knew that I had tried to draw him. I wondered if he could also figure out why I had drawn him in the first place.

At this moment, surprisingly, he gave that portrait back to me and smilingly said, "I still want yours instead, Candy, but only if you don't mind me taking it."

I didn't know why he wanted my childish drawing. Baffled yet delighted, I managed to ask, "Are you sure?"

He answered, beaming at me, "Absolutely! You keep this drawing while I keep yours."

I chastely gave in. "Ok. Suit yourself then."

When he took my picture down from the wall, he casually asked about the portrait in my hand, "By the way, who drew that one?"

"Dr. Martin did." Then I told him briefly how that had happened without giving him the details about why I had done mine.

"Really? I didn't know Dr. Martin could draw!" he exclaimed with surprise while I nodded my head to him and said, "Neither did I. His drawing was so good that I have used it to search for you."

_Oh God!_

I was stunned that I had actually said that aloud, and I covered my big mouth with my hands, blushing and mortified. Albert appeared taken aback too. He swallowed hard and asked dubiously, "You have used this to search for me?"

"Yes... I have," I murmured, attempting to keep my tone light and casual but failed.

There had been a moment of silence as Albert stared at me as if he were trying to piece me together. I felt like hiding from him, and my pounding heart threatened to break my ribcage. Then, to my chagrin, he abruptly looked away and shook his head stubbornly like he was trying to chase away something in his head.

_What's going on? What's Albert thinking?_

Shortly after that, he stood straighter and threw back his shoulders with determination. Then he spoke in a dry, unemotional voice, glancing my way, "Well, Mr Jacobson's family is waiting for me, and I'd better go before I outstay my welcome."

I moved my head in an understanding nod. When he was heading to the door, he stopped unexpectedly and talked to me, "By the way, I will stay in Chicago for a while preparing for my next business trip, so you can always drop by the mansion to see me if you need anything. If you like, I can ask George to help you find a better place to live, but only if you want of course. So please let us know your preference, ok?"

In other words, not only I wasn't obliged to move into the mansion, but he offered to find me a new place to live. Apparently, he didn't expect me to change my lifestyle at all and still let me choose what I would like to do.

"Does that mean you won't come to visit me?" I whimpered without hiding my disappointment.

He explained in a cordial manner, "I will try, Candy, but I can't guarantee because I have a very tight schedule in the meantime. But as I said, you're welcome to drop by anytime you like, and I will reserve the room Aunt Elroy had prepared for you. Feel free to come stay in the mansion briefly or for a longer period. It's totally up to you, but please don't feel obligated to visit us."

Now I was even more perplexed. What did he mean earlier by saying that I might have to give up a lot if I got involved with Sir William Ardlay? He also mentioned something about not wanting to force me into a life that would entrap me. I didn't see myself giving up anything for the time being at all.

I guessed I must have been exhausted because I didn't really understand what he was getting at. I sighed heavily and remarked in a small voice, "Ok."

He fastened his eyes upon my face momentarily and ventured softly, "Would you want to come home with me, Candy?"

I replied defensively, "I have already said no to Great Aunt Elroy."

For a split second, disappointment crossed his features, but he recovered so fast that I nearly thought that hadn't happened at all. Then he put up an understanding smile on his face and said, "You know what? She told me to inform you that you could always change your mind. But anyway, take good care of yourself, Candy. I will see you around, ok?"

I returned a small smile and opened the door for him. He waved my picture in his hand and spoke to me happily, "Thank you for letting me keep this. I like it a lot."

As he turned around and left, a wave of despondency came over me as I could envision how much I would miss him, recalling how empty life had been without him by my side. So I ran after him, hollering, "Albert!"

He was walking down the stairs already. He stopped his steps and raised his head to me, asking with concern, "What's up, Candy?"

The dreadful fear that the gap between Albert and me would increase in time suffused through me, but my voice seemed to have died in my throat. For one moment, I thought of giving in. I wanted to tell him that I would follow him home. Yet the thought of living in that grand mansion as the adoptive daughter of Sir William repulsed me and helped suppress my urge. Besides, I could foresee how Great Aunt Elroy would do everything possible in her power to separate me from her dear William and would do her best to make me meet different young men. It was probably safer to keep my distance from her.

As I shouldn't keep him waiting, I forced myself to break the awkward silence, "Albert, you must promise me not to work too hard, ok?"

He flashed me a radiant smile and said aloud, "I will try, Miss Candice!"

I stayed where I was until I saw his figure disappear out of the main entrance. For some reason, I had a feeling that this was the last time we saw each other in this apartment building.

(to be continued...)

=o=o=o=

**Author's note:**

Originally I have planned to finish this story in two chapters, but it turns out that I don't want to rush the story! However, rest assured that this story is meant to be short nevertheless!

The conversation between Madam Elroy and Candy is totally my imagination, but I strongly believe that Madam Elroy would not do nothing once she had known that Albert and Candy had lived together for a long time.

According to the Candy Candy Final Story (Book 2, Page 239), Albert displayed Candy's childish drawing in his office while Candy kept Dr. Martin's drawing in her jewellery box. I don't know exactly when or how Albert discovered Candy's drawing, but I just borrowed this idea into this story.

**Footnote:**

[1] "Eternal Flame" by The Bangles (1988).

[2] My appreciation goes to one of the devoted Albert fans who gave me this idea.

=o=o=o=

Revised: April 2, 2013 (minor changes)


	3. Arms

**Disclaimer:** Candy Candy and all characters belong to Kyoko Mizuki, images to Yumiko Igarashi and anime to Toei Animation.

My characters include Mr. Spencer, Mrs. Thompson, Lucy and Jack.

**Note: **Other than the manga and the Candy Candy Final Story, part of this chapter was also based on the old Candy Candy novel, which was the novelization of the original manga version plus letter correspondence of Albert and Candy after she returned to Pony's Home.

I'd like to thank those who continue to support and encourage me. Reviews are very welcome as usual! Again my appreciation goes to my beta readers for their feedback and effort!

-Ms Puddleglum

**Chapter 3: Arms**

I looked out the window of my living room on one early sunny Saturday morning, holding the reply letter from Pony's home in my hand. I watched some neighborhood kids chasing each other in merriment, which reminded me of my worry-free childhood, running up and down Pony's Hill with other kids. I unfolded the letter, which I received yesterday, and read again.

'_...The flowers are blooming on the hill. It would be nice if you and Annie would come to visit us... we are waiting for you...'_

The last time I had visited Pony's Home was to ask Miss Pony to keep Mr. McGregor's dog, Mina, for me. Since I had relocated to Chicago and later run into Albert in St. Joanna Hospital, I hadn't written a single letter to them, and that was more than a year ago already. Likewise, I hadn't written to Uncle William either because I couldn't honestly tell him that I was living with a male patient with amnesia whom I had met long time ago in Lakewood. Not only that, I owed my life to this suspicious man who had broken into one of Ardlay's properties, the Mountain Lodge in the forest. Now that I thought about it, it was very funny indeed. At times I wondered if I had written to George or Uncle William about my life with a male patient, what would have happened then?

I left the window side and checked my calendar on the wall. It had been nearly two weeks since I last saw Albert. After he had left that evening, I was going to write to Miss Pony and Sister Lane, but I had been so exhausted and absolutely not in the right mood to write anything to anybody. I had fixed a quick bite to fill my stomach and had gone straight to bed afterwards, thinking the sleep would help me forget the melancholy feelings.

Well, I had been wrong. I could hardly sleep that night, ending up huddled on the lower bunk bed, weeping about what had transpired since I had met Albert again in Lakewood. After meeting with Great Aunt Elroy that afternoon, my joyous mood of reuniting with Albert had been shattered and my hope of getting together with him had been dashed. Whatever he had said to me later that evening had also sent mixed messages to my brain.

The next day, I had finally managed to pen a letter to Pony's Home. A few days after that, when I had come back from work, I had been pleasantly surprised to find a letter from Albert in my mailbox and had memorized every single word in that letter by now.

'_Dear Candy,_

_How are you doing? I'm sorry that I haven't had time to visit you at all. As I have told you earlier, my days are packed with meetings, presentations, projects, business dinners, and more. _

_I hope things will ease up next week so that I may drop by your place in the evening. Meanwhile, please feel free to come to visit us in the weekend! You should be able to find me in my study._

_Please pass my regards to Dr. Martin. Take care!_

_Yours truly,_

_Albert'_

Since then, I had been waiting for him to show up. I had come home from Happy Clinic with anticipation only to feel disappointed day after day. Right now, I came back to the dining table and sat myself down to try to finish my breakfast, but I got no appetite. Sighing heavily, I put down my cutlery and rested my elbows on the table, propping my chin up with the palms of my hands and staring blankly at the window.

I didn't expect Albert could be so engaged with work, and why should I be surprised? He was in charge of a business enterprise now. I wondered if he missed me at all, but I believed his hectic schedule might have exhausted him every day that he didn't have any problem drifting off to sleep at night, unlike me.

Whatever had happened after the engagement party had been bothering me still and disturbing my sleep lately. Great Aunt Elroy's words had instilled doubts into my mind about Albert, and on top of that, I couldn't stop feeling inferior especially when I pondered about the great wealth of the Ardlay's clan. I was almost convinced that Albert deserved a well bred, young lady raised in a reputable family with relatively the same social and economic status.

Yet I refused to believe that he had already lost his feelings for me unless I heard it directly from him. The fact that he had wanted my childish drawing instead of the better one had actually given me a flicker of hope. The way he had stared at me after discovering that I had searched for him using Dr. Martin's drawing and his odd reaction afterwards hinted that he had been holding back himself. I had a strong feeling that it wasn't just my wishful thinking or my imagination. It must have something to do with what he had said about him not being the same man anymore. Besides, it was clear that he didn't want to drag me into a life that confined me or pressured me to conform to old fashioned family values and traditions.

Was that the main reason why he hesitated to confess his feelings to me? After some contemplation, I believed he had meant that if I were his significant other, I would have so many more obligations. He wasn't sure if I could endure those as he himself had been trying to escape from reality most of his life. In fact, I wasn't sure either, but I did want to support and encourage him as his partner in life. But was I qualified enough to fulfill that kind of role for him?

On the other hand, it could be his own conscience that forbade him to listen to his heart due to our adoptive relationship. At any rate, being in love with my legal guardian had put me through emotional turmoil these days. What exasperated me most was there seemed no end to it because it didn't look like he would revert the adoption at all.

Why was our love so complicated?

I had let myself slip into a deep reverie until my trance was broken by my alarm clock. I hastily finished my breakfast and ran out of the door. On my way to Happy Clinic, I heard a loud squeal "Help!" from somewhere nearby. It sounded like a kid, and I quickly tried to locate the source.

Soon I saw a crowd gathering on a street, and I sped up my steps advancing toward them. When I peeked through the people, I noted a sick-looking girl in her early teen years, who collapsed on the ground, crying and holding a younger boy in her arms. The boy also looked very pale. At this point, a middle-aged man stepped forward and crouched down right beside the girl, asking, "What's wrong? What can I do to help?"

In between her sobs, she replied, "My brother... has been sick... we don't have money... to see a doctor..."

I pushed through the crowd and approached her, saying, "I'm a nurse. Let me take your brother to a doctor."

The middle-aged man offered, "I can carry him, Miss?"

So I introduced myself, "You can just call me Candy. Sir, please come with me."

"Spencer is my name," said Mr. Spencer, and he quickly carried the little boy in his arms, following me to Happy Clinic, which was just two blocks away. The girl then told me that her name was Lucy and her brother was Jack.

Dr. Martin examined Jack for a while, and after asking Lucy some questions, he believed Jack just didn't have enough to eat for a long time. Then we found out that their father had passed away last year, and their mother had been depressed and confined to bed rest since.

At this moment, Mr. Spencer showed us his business card and said, "I actually work for an orphanage nearby, and I will talk to the staff and see how they can help your family, Lucy."

"An orphanage in this neighborhood? Is it new?" asked Dr. Martin with surprise.

Mr. Spencer answered, "Yes! It's called Pure Hearts. In fact, we just started a few months ago. The owner is Mrs. Thompson, who was recently widowed and has no children of her own. She was very generous to donate a portion of her pretty inheritance from her late husband to start an orphanage. Although our operating cost is getting high, I believe Mrs. Thompson will be more than willing to find a way to help Lucy and Jack."

Dr. Martin was just as kind as usual and gave the kids something to eat before Mr. Spencer took them back home. Since that moment, I had been reflecting on my life. Although I did go through some hardships in the past as an orphan growing up at Pony's Home, I had never starved like Lucy and Jack.

As a matter of fact, I could even choose to live an extravagant life as the daughter of Sir William, just like what Great Aunt Elroy had depicted to me. However, I didn't regret not to move in the mansion despite my yearning for Albert. Since I had left London, I had willed myself to be self-sufficient. Whereas a few years ago, I hadn't had any choice as a young teenager, and moving in to the Lakewood Villa seemed so natural back then.

All of a sudden, I missed Miss Pony and Sister Lane very much, and I could easily imagine how a smile would gleam through Miss Pony's spectacles if she knew I would go visit them. In fact, if I hadn't been forced into an engagement with Neil, I would have moved back to Pony's Home already.

A bleak thought then flashed across my mind, _it was time for me to move on, and the sooner I started the better._

Honestly, I could not continue my awkward relationship with Albert. To most people, he was my legal father, but I had problem accepting this in my heart and I didn't know when I would be able to or whether I would want to adjust. Even if Albert and I could ignore that aspect in our relationship, there were other obstacles in our way, and the biggest of which must be Great Aunt Elroy. I was more than certain that she would do everything possible in her power to separate us. Yet what discouraged me most was that I honestly didn't know what Albert thought about me or whether he was in the process of adapting to the adoptive relationship.

_And perhaps, by going back and keeping my distance from Albert, I may be able to forget him in time... _

I definitely needed time to think it through before I would do anything rash. Then I heard a shattering noise. I looked down and realized that I had accidentally slipped a glass while washing it.

"Candy!" Dr. Martin rushed to my side. I whimpered, "I'm sorry for being absentminded again..." My voice broke off as I felt a piercing pain on my fingers while picking up the shattered pieces.

I quickly pressed on the wound, and the doctor attended my injury right away. Moments later, Dr. Martin gave me a worried look and urged, "Candy, I know your mind have been quite preoccupied lately, so you might as well go home for the day now. I will handle the mess myself."

As he carefully picked the broken glasses from the sink, another gloomy thought surfaced in my head, _the wounds will eventually heal and the pain will subside... I should pick up the pieces and just move on..._

On my way home, I seriously contemplated my options and going back to Pony's Home seemed to be the right decision for the time being. Should I bring it up and discuss it with Albert? Or should I just tell him my decision?

Later, when I passed by a chapel near Magnolia, I happened to see a big sign right next to it, which I hadn't noticed before. The words captured my heart, and I got misty-eyed as if God had spoken to me to confirm my thinking:

'_For he will deliver the needy who cry out, the afflicted who have no one to help._

_He will take pity on the weak and the needy and save the needy from death._

_He will rescue them from oppression and violence, for precious is their blood in his sight.' _[1]

Being a nurse was my calling, and since there were hardly any doctor or nurse near Pony's Home, I could put myself to better use there. I also remembered my own words _'I'm leaving to find my own path...'_ in my letter to Uncle William before leaving London to return to America. I had asked him for his forgiveness back then because I had wanted to get by on my own without his financial support.

Since then I had been able to survive without relying on Uncle William's provision. I strongly believed that I could continue to be independent, and I certainly hoped I would live my life to the fullest. Therefore, the more I mused about it, the more I was convinced to return to Pony's Home. Since Albert had told me that he should be home in the weekend, I decided to pay him a visit tomorrow and inform him of my decision.

Heading to the Ardlay's principal residence the next day, I tried to formulate the words in my brain so that I could articulate my thoughts to Albert later. At the same time, I felt nervous too. What if Albert asked me not to go? Would I listen to him?

However, my gut feeling was that he would let me go. He was an open-minded person and had given me freedom to choose my path back then, and I was sure he hadn't changed much even now.

But what if he asked me to stay in Chicago? Would I be happy to comply? With mixed feelings, I arrived at the grand entrance in the mansion, and soon, the butler came to greet me.

"Good morning, Miss Candice! Are you here to see Sir William?"

I was a little shocked but managed to reply, "Yes! How do you know?"

Then he explained to me that Sir William had left him a message that if I happened to drop by, please brought me to him.

_So Albert is expecting me?_

"Right this way please, Miss Candice." So I trailed after the butler until we arrived at a room with impressive double doors, which were made of high quality solid timber. My thumping heart indicated how elated I was to be able to see Albert again, but I stressed to myself what my reason for seeing him today was.

The butler knocked on the door a couple of times until he heard a consent that he could come in. Then he opened the door to announce my presence while I remained on my spot. I heard Albert's excited voice, "Miss Candice? Let her in please."

All this formality put me ill at ease and once again asserted that Albert and I belonged to different worlds, which confirmed my decision to return to Pony's Home.

The butler politely beckoned me to come in. As I entered the bright, spacious study with high ceilings and delicate furniture, I could tell that the room was already bigger than my apartment. The windows were so large that they almost reached the ceilings and provided not only natural light to the study but also a beautiful view of bushes and grass in the garden. Then the butler courteously excused himself and closed the door behind him.

"Candy! I'm so glad to see you here today!" exclaimed Albert with glee. He looked so dashing in his fine black suit, but he was not wearing a tie today. Holding a heavy book in his hand, he stood in front of an ornately carved wood bookcase with shiny, glass doors. It looked like he was in the middle of working, even on a Sunday morning.

I advanced toward his desk, took a deep breath and addressed him in a formal way, "Good morning, Albert. I know you're busy, so I will make this quick. I've decided to move back to Pony's Home."

His mouth was slightly parted momentarily but no words came out. The look on his face told me that he was totally caught by surprise and wasn't quite sure how to respond. I just waited patiently, avoiding his eyes by lowering my head a little.

"You would like to move back to Pony's Home?" he repeated my words as though he couldn't believe his ears.

Thus, I let him know about my plan with a serious face that I would want to work at a nearby hospital in that rural area. While he was listening to me, he looked solemn; but as soon as I was done talking, an enormous smile lit up his face, and he uttered in a positive tone, "It is so like you, Candy. Sounds nice!"

Right this instant, I realized that I didn't really want to separate myself from Albert, and I couldn't help feeling disappointed at myself for being regretful about my decision now. Yet the fact that he didn't even try to dissuade me struck me hard, and Great Aunt Elroy's words annoyingly rang in my ears again, _William has got past his foolishness already_. That explained why he could readily let me choose my own path as I saw fit.

Amidst my emotional turbulence, I heard his sincere voice, "Candy, I'd like to help you pack and move."

I shook my head and put up a faint smile, striving to keep my despondency from showing, "I don't have many belongings at all, and I will donate most of our stuff if you don't mind."

"Please go ahead. When do you plan to leave?"

"I will write to Miss Pony and Sister Lane to inform them first, and I should be able to leave Chicago by the end of next week."

"That soon? Have you told Archie and your friends?" he questioned, a hint of surprise in his voice. He swiftly put his book down and advanced toward me.

"I'm about to," came my short reply. I was getting nervous that he would come too close to me because I might lose my cool, but to my relief, he stopped outside his arm's reach, maintaining a safe distance from me.

"Unfortunately, I don't think you can find them now. They had told me during breakfast earlier this morning that they would go shopping for the upcoming ball in a few days," he remarked while leaning on the edge on his ebony desk.

"Is that right? That's fine then. Would you please tell them on my behalf?" I replied without looking at him directly. I was afraid I would change my mind and chicken out.

"No problem at all, Candy. Do you want me to talk to Aunt Elroy as well or do you want to write a letter to her yourself?" asked Albert, gazing searchingly at me.

"Right... how could I forget her?" I answered, and throwing a quick glance at him, I asked doubtfully, "But why do I need to write a letter?"

"My aunt has gone to Florida with the Leagans and will probably stay there for a while. The Leagans are in the process of expanding their hotel business over there, and my aunt wants to get more details about it," he explained with a matter-of-fact tone.

"Oh... in that case, do you mind if you also notify her please?" I attempted to avoid contacting Great Aunt myself. I believed she would celebrate and be extremely relieved that I would leave Chicago for good.

Albert gave me a reassuring smile and uttered, "No worries. I will handle her for you too."

At this point, I happened to see my poor drawing on his ebony desk, and I couldn't help blushing a little. Albert realized that I saw it, so he picked it up and stated, "I was going to ask you if I can display this in my office. Even George commented that it was a masterpiece beyond price." He finished with an amused smile on his face.

Blushing even harder, George's comment made me chuckle nonetheless. "You're welcome to do whatever you like to it, Albert. It's yours now."

"Thank you, Candy. You don't know how much this drawing helped to release my stress and fatigue," he responded earnestly with a soft sigh.

_Is he trying to imply something to me?  
_

So I took up my courage and asked, keeping my tone casual, "Albert, do you have anything to say to me before I go now?"

His gaze met mine, and for a brief moment, I believed I saw struggles in his blue eyes and his jaws clenched before he cleared his throat and opened his mouth, his voice calm and even, "Candy, I wish you nothing but the best and please keep in touch."

Needless to say, I was chagrined by his response, but I choked down a sob and managed to speak over it, "Same to you, Albert. Remember not to work too hard and take care."

As he nodded to me quietly with a somber face, I excused myself and headed to the double door right away. I was afraid I would not be able to control my emotion if I stayed longer. But he stopped me by putting a hand on my shoulder and urged, "Candy, let me take you home."

I drew a deep breath to compose myself so as to decline his offer tactfully. As I spun around to face him, he instantly retrieved his hand and carefully kept his arms on his side. "Albert, your schedule is tight, and you know I'm fond of walking, so please don't feel obligated. I'd like to browse around the city a bit today as well."

He let out a sigh in resignation and said in a sorrowful tone, "It's a pity that I don't have time to accompany you before you head back to Pony's Home."

I gave him a silent smile as my acknowledgement. Then he implored sincerely, holding my gaze, "Please do let me know the date you will be leaving so that I can take you to the train station."

I shook my head stubbornly and raised my voice unintentionally, "No! Please don't!"

Instantaneously he asked dubiously with shock, "Why not?"

"Sorry..." I said briskly, softening the tone of my voice and averting his gaze. Then I added, "I meant I would go to the train station myself. I will apprise you of the date for sure though."

He was mute for a few seconds before he swallowed hard and reminded me, his voice very tender and comforting, "Don't forget that you're always welcome to come back here. Your room is always reserved for you."

Nodding to him, I excused myself again and left his study in a hurry, fighting to hold my tears back. _I won't let anybody see me cry..._

I trudged across the hallway, feeling saddened and weary. Within a minute or so, I found an exit that seemingly led to a garden, so I stepped outside through that door because I wanted to breathe some fresh air. Presently, I sensed that I was being watched, and as I lifted my head, I gasped in astonishment when I saw Albert through the large window of his study. He stood there, smiling and waving his hand at me. I promptly faked a happy smile on my face and waved back at him.

_Yes it's painful to leave Albert, but it's time for a fresh start! I know my mothers will definitely welcome me home._

I didn't really go around the city after leaving the mansion, but I spent a great deal of time in Chicago Nature Park by the lake, where I had tracked down Albert after he had escaped from the hospital more than a year ago. I had been sitting there, holding my knees against my chest, until the sun began to set, reminiscing my time with him ever since we started living together. At first, I had regarded him as a dear big brother, but not anymore as time had gone by.

During my recollecting and looking back, what saddened me most was the loss of Albert as someone whom I could always depend on. Shortly after that, tears escaped my eyes and sobs choked themselves out my throat, which attracted curious glances from people around me. Yet, I couldn't care less, and I knew I had to let my emotions out, but I promised myself that this would be the last time I cried about how depressing it was that my relationship with him had to end this way.

No doubt my plan surprised Dr. Martin. When I broke him the news the next day at Happy Clinic, he looked at me with a straight face in silence until he breathed out a deep sigh and murmured with a sad smile playing on his lips, "Hmmm... even Albert gave you his permission... in that case, I cannot say no to you then."

He then let me know that Sir William Ardlay had expressed his gratitude by giving the doctor one year supply of whiskey, but they were all diluted by water. For some reason, my intuition told me that Dr. Martin had known Albert's true identity for a while already. Anyway, I was happy to know that Albert would take care of Dr. Martin.

Later, the doctor sent me away with kind and encouraging words. He agreed that a nurse was more needed in the rural area than in Chicago.

"Take care, Candy."

"So do you, Dr. Martin."

As soon as I sent a letter to Pony's Home telling my mothers about my plan, I bought the one-way train ticket and sent a letter to inform Albert what day I would be leaving and that I would come by to bid them all goodbye before my trip.

In the following days, I was very busy cleaning up my place and donated most of our belongings to charities. In fact, I donated all Albert's items except the pajamas and the mug with his initial that I had bought for him. I had the matching items too and would keep them all together with my other keepsakes, including Albert's portrait that Dr. Martin had drawn for me. The time we had lived together as siblings in this apartment would forever remain in my heart, and I had fond memories of those times even now.

In addition, I paid a visit to the orphanage, Pure Hearts, where Mr. Spencer worked. He introduced me to the kind old lady, Mrs. Thompson, who reminded me of Miss Pony although much older. I also met Lucy and Jack again, who looked in much better shape already. They got their mother's consent to assist the staff in handling the younger kids in the orphanage, and they got to eat with them too.

Before I left Pure Hearts, I passed an envelope to Mr. Spencer in which I had put half of the money Albert had left for me on that winter night a few months ago as his appreciation for my help in the past. The other half I planned to give to Pony's Home. Once Mr. Spencer opened the envelope, he noticed the generous amount and was at a loss for words. I told him the money wasn't mine, and if he wanted to thank someone, he should write to Sir William Ardlay.

He was stunned that I knew Sir Ardlay, one of the most powerful figures in Chicago but never showed up in public. I smiled and casually remarked, "When you write to him, please feel free to say that you know Candice White."

When everything was settled, I received a reply from my mothers, and they expressed how impatient they were waiting for me to come home. This wasn't the first time I had gone back to Pony's Home when I had needed to heal my wounds and find my way. I had done that twice if I remembered correctly, first after Anthony's tragic death and then after Terry's abrupt departure from London. This time, I knew I would miss Albert a lot, but it was better for me to stay far away from him to try to clear my thoughts and sort out my feelings for him.

The big day finally arrived and all I carried were two small suitcases. I had mixed emotions while heading towards the Ardlay's mansion. I knew I would definitely miss all my friends here and was slightly frightened of what my future would hold, but I was definitely looking forward to the new adventure in life.

However, I was beyond shocked when I was told by the butler that none of my friends, including Sir William, was present due to some emergency.

I couldn't believe this was happening because they should know that I was coming today to bid them goodbye, so I was tremendously worried about them. I politely inquired, "May I know what's happened?"

The butler answered matter-of-factly, slightly bowing, "I'm sorry I don't know, Miss Candice."

My heart was filled with consternation about what had happened to them, but I had a train to catch, so I cordially thanked the butler and went to Stear's grave directly to bid him goodbye.

Only when I was sitting on the train did I realize that I was quite tired after days of packing. My eyelids sagged and my mind wandered, remembering Albert's words to me, _Candy, keep in touch... remember you are welcome to come back..._

I didn't know whether I would go back to Chicago anytime soon, but I would definitely write to Albert, especially because I was anxious about him and the others. It was unfortunate that I didn't have a chance to see them before I left, but in a sense, that saved me from the need to put on a smiley face.

_Albert... all the best to you... I will never forget you and my precious moments with you even though we can't work it out, and please wish me luck for the new beginning in my life..._

Within seconds, a lump came to my throat, and a tear escaped from the corner of my eye, but I quickly brushed it away. Later, I told myself to get some sleep because I knew the trip would be exhausting and I still needed to hire a carriage to get to my destination. Before long, the sounds created by the train and the track, so rhythmic and powerful, had put me in a deep slumber at last.

Finally, the carriage took me back to the familiar surroundings. It was so good to be home, and I was excited and delighted when I noticed Pony's Home from afar. Mina, Mr. McGregor's beloved pet, was the one who greeted me first. Then I saw Jimmy, Miss Pony and Sister Lane. We burst in tears, embracing one another with love.

A while later, my mothers said that some good-looking guests had been here waiting for me. Feeling puzzled, I was thrilled to see Archie, Annie and Patty! _But where is Albert? _

Then they unveiled their secret plan to come in advance in order to give me a pleasant surprise when I arrived. I ran to hug Patty and complained that they had made me worry. "Even Albert wasn't home!"

Archie winked at me and said, "Albert has come here too!"

I hid my relief and feigned my upset. "I was tricked by you all..."

After that, Miss Pony showed me the feast that Albert had prepared to welcome me back, so it looked like he had planned this well ahead of time. I was profoundly touched because I knew how occupied he was with work.

"I bet it was Albert who had invited you all to come!" I asked despite knowing the answer already.

"Yes!" Archie smilingly replied.

"But I wanted to come too myself," answered Annie wholeheartedly.

When I saw my best friends gather here at Pony's Home, I could hardly contain my happiness. With my eyes brimming with tears of joy, I was more than glad to see the reunion of Annie and my foster mothers because I knew that Annie had denied her origin before. Both Archie and Patty were charmed by this place too.

_But why isn't Albert here with us? Is he wandering out there somewhere?_

Wiping the tears on my face, I murmured, "I'm going out to find Albert."

As soon as I was out, I glanced around the perimeter, searching for him. But surprisingly, he was nowhere to be found._ Where could he have gone? Perhaps if I stand on top of Pony's Hill, I would be able to spot him._

Running at my top speed, I reached the top of the hill in no time, overlooking Pony's Home. The grasses were so green, and there were numerous colorful flowers of various sizes and shapes scattered about. From the trees around me came the chirping of birds, and I even spotted some butterflies fluttering about.

As I gazed out at the beautiful landscape, so many memories came flooding back from my childhood, and I remembered Anthony, who had never made it here, and Terry, who was once here all alone by himself on a snowy day.

As tears were streaming down my face, I heard a familiar voice, "Little girl, you are much prettier when you smile."

_That sounded like... Albert? _

I stiffened, utterly dumbstruck to hear someone repeat this statement that had been long buried in my mind. My pulse raced as I cautiously turned to the source of the voice. I was right! Through my tears I could see Albert standing with his hand on a tree that was some distance away. He was dressed in his regular, casual outfit, fixing his affectionate gaze at me.

While he remained silent and motionless, letting his words sink in, my head was in a whirl! Staring at his smiling face for a few more seconds, all of a sudden I could envision in my mind how his face morphed into that handsome face of Prince on the Hill! It all made perfect sense now. Albert was an Ardlay, and his sweet voice, his shiny blond hair, and his beautiful blue eyes all matched with those of my prince!

_Oh God! Oh my God! Albert was Prince on the Hill!_

The refreshing breeze on the hill was caressing my tear-stained cheeks. Under the beautiful blue sky, Prince on the Hill was here once again, smiling at me. An ecstatic grin soon found its way to my face.

_Albert... Uncle William... Prince on the Hill!_

After taking a couple of shy steps, I finally sprinted toward my prince. Instantaneously, he understood my intention, and his face illuminated at once. His strong, loving arms were then outstretched, ready to welcome me into his warm embrace, which caused my heart to leap.

I had never forgotten about Prince on the Hill, and how could I not love that sweet smile on his face? The radiance of his smile was as warm as the sunrays, and it was so inviting that I threw myself onto him, wrapping my arms around his torso and nuzzling my head onto his chest.

My voice broke on a happy sob. "Albert, oh Albert! I didn't know..."

"Candy..." His voice was hoarse with emotion too.

When I felt Albert hugging me so tightly as if he didn't want to let me go, my body quivered with euphoria and my heart beat furiously within my ribcage. I felt so content being in the protecting circle of his arms once more as I had terribly missed his loving hug, especially after all these months of longing to be close to him again. His warm body, his strong heartbeat and his familiar scent told me that this was real.

The next thing I knew, Albert lifted my feet off the ground and spun me around, laughing in jubilance. I joined in his laughter nearly right away. I felt so happy for the first time in a long while. My previous doubts of his feelings for me faded away, and my sorrow of parting with him turned into joy to be reunited with my prince.

As a matter of fact, when we had lived together in the apartment, I had shown Albert my treasured badge and told him many times about Prince on the Hill, so he had known for some time that he was my first love without telling me. Now that he had confessed, I must ask him later why he had deliberately kept this big secret from me for so long. Yet something strange happened at this moment because I felt someone wiping away my tears. Then I heard a gentle voice call my name, "Candy..."

After some struggles, I woke up, forcing my eyes to open drowsily. _Where am I? _Still feeling groggy, I saw Albert's smiling face in front of mine, his soft fingertips lingering on my cheeks.

(to be continued...)

=o=o=o=

**Author's note:**

For those who are familiar with the manga know that quite a bit in this chapter was my imagination and/or interpretation of the story. When I first read the manga, I didn't understand why Candy decided to return to Pony's Home after reuniting with Albert, the man she had pined over for months. In addition, it was apparent that they had feelings for each other, so I scratched my head trying to read between the lines why Albert let her go and why Candy left Chicago knowing that she would miss him.

As I have mentioned before, I was inspired to write this story after having some discussions among some Albert fans. We believed there were more in the original story than we could read in the manga version. In particular, I was disappointed that we don't get to see Albert and Candy hug at the end at all (even though it is obvious that it will happen), so I just had to imagine my own. I hope you will like my description even though it may not match your imagination. Please feel free to share yours with me by writing a review or sending me a message.

According to the old Candy Candy novel, after Albert's confession, George came to pick him up due to some urgent business issues, so he had to leave with George in a hurry. Then Candy wrote her first letter to her prince that night, telling him that "I feel somewhere in my body quivering with emotion" and "I have been looking at the stars until now. I feel so happy for the first time in a long while." She sounded like a typical girl in love, don't you agree?

**Footnote:**

[1] These verses are extracted from Psalm 72:12-14 in the Holy Bible.

=o=o=o=

Revised: May 25, 2013 (minor changes)


	4. Promises

**Disclaimer:** Candy Candy and all characters belong to Kyoko Mizuki, images to Yumiko Igarashi and anime to Toei Animation.

**Note: **I'd like to take this opportunity to thank those who have given me support through their reviews or private messages in the past, which have definitely motivated me to keep writing! In particular, I deeply appreciate those who have used a translator to read my stories. This is indeed encouraging, especially I have tried doing that before and it could be very frustrating sometimes.

I hope you will enjoy reading this chapter, and I'll be happy to hear from you! Please feel free to write in your own language.

Once again, my gratitude goes to my beta readers for their valuable suggestions and feedback.

-Ms Puddleglum

**Chapter 4: Promises**

_Why is it so dim in here? Aren't we supposed to be on Pony's Hill? Why is Albert wearing a dark suit now?_

Totally disoriented, I had no idea what was happening. As I glanced around, I realized that I was in my nightgown, sitting on a rocking chair, while Albert was half kneeling before me. He was in his work attire, his tie loosened and collar unbuttoned. Though he appeared a little tired, he was still handsome as ever.

With his hands reaching up to cradle my face, he said, "Let me take a good look at you, Candy. I've been gone for slightly more than six weeks and I have not spent a day without missing you."

His words finally woke me up from my daze. Immediately I flung my arms around his neck and gave him a quick peck on his cheek, hollering with great joy, "Albert, you're home!"

He chuckled merrily and wrapped his strong arms around my back in response. At this moment, I couldn't help but question myself if I was still dreaming, so I pulled away from him in order to cup his face with my hands, just to make sure he was real and tangible.

"This seems too good to be true," I expressed my inner doubt aloud. "Please tell me that this is not a dream, Albert."

With an amused smile on his face, he lightly stroked my nose. "I assure you that I'm home with you, Candy, and I'm not going anywhere tonight."

"What time is it now by the way?" I asked him softly.

"It's half an hour before midnight, so I made it after all!" he answered, beaming.

"But I thought you said you weren't able to come back today?" I questioned with a hint of puzzlement in my voice.

He sighed while fondly caressing my face. "I didn't want to give you any false hope unless I was certain about it. Anyway, George and I had worked extra hard and managed to finish the work in time, so I went straight to the train station to rush home. In fact, George is still in New York now and he won't return to Chicago until tomorrow late afternoon."

"Oh, you must be exhausted now," I uttered in a low voice. Then I realized that he was still in a kneeling position, so I quickly suggested, "Let's sit together on this chair."

Albert agreed and let go of me while slowly pulling himself up to his full height. As he gave me a hand to help me get up, there was a thud on the floor. He stooped to pick up the book and commented. "Candy, you just dropped your diary."

"Thanks!" I got it from him and put it on a wooden table nearby.

As he lowered himself down on the rocking chair, I promptly sat on his lap sideways with both my legs on his left side and my back against his right arm, hanging my arms around his neck. He placed his right arm around my waist and regarded me tenderly with his sky blue eyes, his left hand fingertips grazing my chin.

A moment later, he leaned forward to brush his lips across mine briefly. "Happy anniversary to my dearest wife," he breathed to my ear, which tickled me and made me giggle, and swiftly added, "I'm sorry for waking you up just now, but I really wanted you to know that I came back just in time."

"Of course you should wake me up!" I replied sincerely, trailing my fingers against his jaw. "Happy anniversary to you too, my prince! I can't believe our first year has gone by so quickly." Having said that, I gave him a fleeting kiss on his lips in return.

Albert nodded in agreement. His grinning face radiated pride and bliss, his long fingers affectionately lacing through my curls. He used to feel uneasy about me calling him 'my prince', but he had accepted it in the end. Sometimes he even teased me as his princess too. After all, it was just between us and my fond memory of our first encounter on the hill.

Then I heard him, "When I dashed into our bedroom, there were candles and gifts everywhere, but you were nowhere to be found, so I checked this room first. Do you know you were crying and laughing just now in your dream? I heard you call my name a few times, and needless to say, you said 'my prince' more than once too. So what was your dream about?"

I passed him a shy glance and answered with a chaste smile, "It was about one of the most rapturous moments in my life. Do you want to guess?"

"Sure." Then, with his eyes searching my face, he contemplated seriously for a while before he attempted, "Did you dream about how _I _took our relationship to the next level?"

"What did you mean?" I asked, honestly baffled.

"Remember the day we toured around Lakewood for a few hours, laughing and talking?" he explained with a gentle expression.

"Oh... so you meant our first kiss?" I asked as I felt my face get warm from blushing.

He confirmed, his face turning grim however, "Yes... later you wanted to revisit that forest, and you began to cry and blame yourself for being responsible for Anthony's accident. So I pulled you in my arms and told you that I had been the one who had ordered the fox hunting."

His voice still edged with pain, so I continued for him in a sad tone, "Right, I cried so hard on your chest after knowing that we both shared the same anguish, and my tears made a mess on your fine shirt."

He made a nod quietly, and I began reminiscing that particular afternoon when I had been bawling in his loving arms near that forest where the fatal accident had occurred. When my crying had subsided after a long while, I had raised my head to face him. The moment his moist eyes had looked into mine, it had felt like the time had stopped. With his captivating eyes never leaving mine and his left arm holding me tight, his right hand had begun softly brushing the tears off my face, causing my pulse to race and my head to spin. Not long after that, he had gently lifted my chin before leaning in and pressing his warm lips against mine, which had taken my breath away and made me feel like floating on a cloud. That was the first kiss we had shared, which was bittersweetly beautiful and unforgettable.

Right now, Albert reached out to caress my cheek, and the tender look in his eyes hinted that he was recollecting the same incident. I spoke to him in a grateful tone, meeting his intense gaze, "Indeed no words could describe my elation back then when my prince finally made my wish come true by spending a long time with me despite his packed schedule. That night, I felt as though something inside me were revived and I couldn't sleep."

Without saying anything, he shortened the distance between our faces, his eyes hovering on mine and his fingers stroking my cheek. Next, he put his fingers under my chin to lift my face, his hot breath tingling on my lips. As I gazed into his striking blue eyes, I could hardly believe that my heart pounded like I had never been kissed before, which was probably due to the long time we had been apart. At this magical moment, his deep voice dispersed the silence between us, "My mind didn't let me sleep that night either... I kept remembering our wonderful moments that day, especially the kiss."

Right after saying that, he placed a gentle, lingering kiss on my lips, which had nothing to do with passion but everything to do with love and devotion; it was just as amazing and delightful as the first time we kissed.

When we reluctantly broke apart some time later, with my fingertips stroking the taut skin of his chin, I playfully demanded, "But you're wrong, Little Bert. Make another guess, will you?"

Emitting a small sigh, he seemed a little discouraged. After some musing, he stifled a yawn and tried again, "Was it about the time when I showed you the proof that I had annulled the adoption at long last?"

"Did you mean the day when I returned my old diary to you before you took me to Lakewood again on a fine Spring day?"

"Yes... as I have mentioned to you before, your letters always kept my spirits up and brightened my boring days. You can't possibly imagine how much I looked forward to receiving a reply from you back then. But after I got that particular letter in which you had described our moments in Lakewood, I kept reading it over and over during my business trip. Finally, I determined to take you to Lakewood once more as soon as I would be free again with the intent to ask for your hand in marriage. Have I told you what was so special about that letter, Candy?"

"No," came my crisp reply. "You've only told me that it was that letter which propelled you, but you didn't give me the details," I responded as I ran my hands adoringly through his soft locks. He pulled one of my hands out of his hair, the one with the diamond engagement ring. He kissed my fingers and made a request, "It's your turn to make a guess, my princess."

Then he splayed my fingers out with his to join our hands tightly together. I chuckled at him, scratching my head with my free hand while I tried to remember the content of that letter. A moment later, I gingerly asked, "Was it because I asked you to keep my old diary for me?"

He shook his head, smiling, "That was one factor of course."

He paused here, running his fingertips genially around my ear to brush some strands away from my face. Then he continued, "But mainly I was incredibly affected by your words about being grateful to your parents for abandoning you at Pony's Home such that you could meet me."

"That's right! I did say that!" I raised my voice slightly as I slapped a hand to my forehead. Then I said the following from the bottom of my heart, "I still mean it now, Albert. I'm so blessed to have met you in my life."

After this, I gave him a kiss on his temple and murmured against his ear, "It would have been so drearily different without you."

Apparently moved, he leaned in to place a soft kiss on the corner of my mouth and breathed, "You're a blessing to me too, Candy."

Then he tucked me into his arms while I gladly nuzzled my head onto his shoulder, wrapping my arms around him. Breathing in his scent that I had missed so much, I relived in my mind the touching moment when he had proposed to me near the Mountain Lodge. Riding on Stear's swan boat, he had confessed, "Candy, I have longed to let you know about this. Your smiling face was the first thing that came to my mind when I recovered my memory, and I realized then that I was in love with you without knowing."

His confession had stirred my emotion, recognizing that this had been what I had wanted to know. I had been right then. He had fallen in love with me, so he had resolutely concealed his recovery from me in order to stay with me a bit longer.

Soon after that, we had reached the shore near the waterfall. After he had helped me to alight from the swan boat, without letting my hands go, he had bent down on one knee and said, "Candy, I love the twinkle in your beautiful eyes and your smile is what I yearn to see when I come home after a long day of work. Will you marry me?" Then he had presented the sparkling ring to me. Bursting into tears of joy, I could only nod at him in response.

Meanwhile, I snapped myself back to the present and said to my dear husband, "Guess what? I still remember your exact wordings when you proposed to me."

He replied with a soft chortle while gently loosening his arms around me, "Let's hear it."

So I straightened my back and told him all the details, recalling the joyous memory of that day. When I was done, he teased himself, chuckling in embarrassment, "And I had fixed the boat properly so we didn't get soaking wet that time!"

We broke out laughing. A couple of minutes later, he snickered, "Actually I wouldn't mind to spend another afternoon with you in front of the fireplace... you looked so adorable being wrapped in a blanket."

"Oh, please don't remind me of that again!" I complained, pouting. I saw his lips curl up into an amorous smile, his gorgeous blue eyes looking straight into mine. "In fact, you look adorable tonight in your nightgown too, Candy."

That being said, we shared another sweet kiss before saying "I love you" to each other, which soon initiated a long fiery kiss between us as his arms snaked around my waist in a tight grip and my arms went around his neck, tangling my fingers in his tousled hair.

Although this passionate kissing turned me on, my heart wasn't ready yet unfortunately. Thus, when his hands started wandering fervently over my body, I pulled away from the kiss, gasping for air. He was taken aback, visibly confounded; with his face contorting into a mild grimace and his heart pumping erratically against my chest, he muttered breathlessly, "What's the matter, Candy?"

I felt bad and mumbled, "I'm so sorry, Albert. It's just that... that I'm not-"

"It's alright..." he cut me off, waving his hand and heaving heavily. "Just give me a few minutes." Then he averted his eyes and carefully unwound his arms from my torso, indicating that he was exerting effort to suppress his desire for me for the time being.

"Albert..." I uttered in a barely audible voice, feeling regretful about this. He then responded a moment later, forcing a weak smile, "I understand... you want to talk about your dream first. So are you telling me that I was wrong again?"

Just when I thought I should stop playing this guessing game, suddenly he exclaimed with excitement in his eyes and voice, "Ok! I think I know. Nothing could make you more rapturous than our wedding night, am I right?"

Noting a knowing smirk on his face, his question immediately sent a flood of warmth up my neck and into my face. I gave him a mock glare and reproved, thumping his chest slightly, "You're simply incorrigible, Albert!"

With his blue eyes sparkling with mischief, he retorted, feigning puzzlement, "What's wrong with that? I still remember every single detail-"

I instantly shushed him by putting a finger on his mouth. My face flushed red and my heartbeat sped up when the vivid memory of our first night came back to me. "So do I. How could I forget that night? But the answer is no."

As a result, he put up his hands in a surrender gesture and implored with an irresistible smile, "Sorry, Candy, I give up. Could you spare me and give me the answer now?"

I nodded understandingly as I gathered my thoughts. Recalling my dream, my face must have turned somber because his smile vanished within seconds and his back straightened up. "I thought you said your dream was about a happy moment?" he inquired with a look of concern on his face.

Exhaling a deep sigh, I affirmed with a nod. Furrowing his brow, he waited patiently for me to speak up. After some pensive silence, I began, "This was your longest business trip since our wedding, so it was very tough for me even though you kept sending me postcards from time to time. I am glad that my heavy involvement at Pure Hearts and other charities have kept me busy."

I rested my head on his shoulder and carried on, "Ten days ago, I began counting down the days with my fingers to the day I would see you again, and I have decorated our bedroom with many candles of various sizes and shapes for our anniversary. So when you informed me three days ago that you might not make it today, I was terribly upset and disappointed. Tonight, as you must have noticed earlier, the candles all around the room were lit up, but I just couldn't bear to continue to sleep in our bed without you by my side..."

With a lump in my throat, I felt choked up and could not continue. Albert held me in his arms and asked in a soothing voice, "So you'd rather come here to fall asleep on a hard wooden chair?"

Feeling a bit bashful, I came up with a riposte, "But don't you also love to spend your free time with me here sometimes? You have furnished this room for me with your sweat and tears, remember?"

"No doubt," he said in a wistful tone. "It was my surprise present for your birthday after you had returned to Pony's Home. Since the day your engagement was canceled, I had squeezed the time in between my busy schedule and worked so hard to make sure it was ready for you before your birthday. Then out of the blue you came to inform me that you were leaving Chicago for good..." He broke off, shaking his head sadly and giving a bitter chuckle at the memory.

"Well... back then I didn't know..." I remarked in a regretful voice, snuggling up even closer to him. "Anyway, I missed you and felt miserable tonight, and in this room I could feel your love and presence. Therefore, I sat on this rocking chair, which you made with your own hands, and took out my diary to read. I was planning to read something delightful about us to lighten up my mood, but I couldn't help starting on the first page, where I had jotted down the details about the most troubled period of my life. I guess I fell asleep after I had begun reading..."

My voice became less and less audible. He tenderly kissed me on my cheek and spoke in a pensive tone after that, "Candy, believe me, I had been living a constant struggle for months and months after I had recovered my memory; my head told me to forget you but my heart couldn't. On that snowy night, I felt torn when I had no choice but to drag my feet away from the place I used to call home, knowing full well that my time was up and I could not come back to you anymore. My life was never the same again in the following months, like a part of me had gone missing."

So Albert knew exactly which period I was talking about. Without saying anything, I gently pushed myself up so that I could face him, and then we gazed at each other for a bit with moist eyes. Ever since the first time I had met my prince on Pony's Hill, he had been the one who consoled me during the heartbreaking episodes in my life, including Annie's departure, Anthony's death, the breakup with Terry and Stear's death. But the hardest time to me was when he had resolved to hide from me or keep his distance from me, as though I had lost the anchor of my life.

I muttered incoherently as if talking to myself, "Since you had disappeared, I felt so lost and spent many sleepless nights, yearning to see your face again... your parcel from Rockstown put my hopes up... only to find myself being let down later."

"Candy, you know I didn't mean to trick you or upset you at all," he earnestly responded with a remorseful look, grabbing my hands in his and stroking them softly with his thumbs.

As a matter of fact, not long after Albert had confessed to me on Pony's Hill, he had admitted that he had indeed arranged the Rockstown meeting with the intention of leading me back to Terry, but the outcome had considerably astounded him, causing him to wonder whether I had developed strong feelings for him.

Since that day, the Rockstown incident had been buried in our memories. After all, it had involved my ex-love, which had been a very sensitive topic back then. Although we could gradually talk about Terry more without feeling awkward after exchanging several long letters with each other, we had rarely brought up this incident again. However, my dream had affected me so much that I felt like pouring my heart out to Albert tonight.

Then I heard him further explain, "Like I told you before, I honestly thought my feelings for you were one-sided, and I was just a big brother to you. So I sent you that parcel out of my love for you believing that nothing could make you happier by reuniting with-"

Without letting him finish, I said in a thoughtful tone, "Albert, the truth was my mind was fully occupied by you, and I kept reminding myself to hang on to your promise at the end of your parting letter that we would meet again. Therefore, I blindly headed to an unknown town with a faint hope to meet you. Thanks to you, this trip did open my eyes to understand myself. I must admit that I still had a soft spot for Terry when I saw him so miserable up on that so-called stage and I shed lots of tears as a result. Yet, I was utterly certain that breaking up with him in the past had been the right decision, and I had since moved on with my life. Therefore, when I noticed that he could get back on his feet, I had confidence that he would soon overcome his depression, and that was when I resolved to leave the temporary theatre. I myself was surprised by the fact that I could step out without feeling guilty or responsible at all. In my mind, I wished Terry all the best and even urged him to go back to Susanna."

Albert then remarked with a kind expression on his face, "And that was exactly what shocked me afterwards, which made me realize that you had got over him, something that I hadn't expected to happen."

"Yes, I could finally close that chapter of my life," I answered, nodding slowly, and continued reminiscing, "In fact, right after I had left the tent, my heart told me whom I wanted to see, so I looked for you everywhere the next morning... but I ended up feeling sorely disappointed afterwards."

He swallowed hard and sincerely apologized, "I'm sorry, Candy, please understand that my intention was to make you happy and help Terry at the same time."

I acknowledged that by nodding my head again. "In a sense I think you did help him somehow because something must have dawned on him that day or a miracle had happened. He is now doing very well in his acting career, and I'm more than happy for him."

"Then why did you decline Miss Baker's invitation to see Terry's performance as 'Hamlet' after you had moved back to Pony's Home? You know I did encourage you to go."

He asked in a tender voice as he fixed his deep blue eyes searchingly on mine. Holding his gaze, I answered plainly, "Because I cared about your feelings more than mine, Albert."

"Candy," he whispered my name, taking me into his arms and hugging me tight. Then I continued, "No doubt I had some struggles, especially because I had never got a chance to see his performance properly, neither in Chicago nor in New York. A part of me wanted to talk to him, but I reminded myself that I had promised Susanna not to see him again. More importantly, I treasured our new relationship, which was still fragile around that time. One clear sign was that neither of us could mention anything about my old diary that I had written in London." I finished by tightening my arms around him.

Thoroughly moved, Albert expressed appreciatively with tremor in his voice, "Thank you for putting me first."

Then he placed his soft mouth over mine with tenderness. His kiss and his touch always managed to alleviate my sadness. A while later, he broke off the kiss to remind me, "Candy, didn't you tell me your dream was about a rapturous moment?"

"Yes and no," I said before I began, "In my dream, I recalled the period in which I didn't know your true feelings for me and how I had struggled through that time until you finally ended my misery by coming to Pony's Hill to confess that you were my first love. That was the moment you woke me up, and that explains why I was crying and laughing in my dream."

"I see," he said in a low voice and remained mute for a few seconds. With a nostalgic look on his face, he started, "Just like you, I have never forgotten our first encounter on that hill either because you managed to make me laugh heartily for the first time since Rosemary had passed away. You laughed with me too, and seeing your smile lifted my spirits and made me forget my troubles. Therefore, I have always loved your smiling face and remembered our conversation by heart. I just hadn't expected that you would also remember me."

"I have told you this many times, Albert. Not only I remembered you, but I also hoped to see you again on Pony's Hill after that day. Your badge was the only proof to me that you were real."

He flashed me a contented smile and continued reminiscing, "Well, I didn't know a little girl was waiting for me to reappear, and I went to London attending college back then. Therefore, years after that day on Pony's Hill, I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw my badge dangling around your neck after I had rescued you from the waterfall. So when I learned about how the Leagans had maltreated you, I determined to give you a better life by adopting you."

Then I showed Albert that I was wearing his badge again because I had yearned for his presence and affection during his business trip. He admitted, "I missed you so much too, Candy, and felt just as lonely as you have described. In fact, I can't possibly imagine my life without you now."

At this point, I mustered up my courage to ask the question that was buried in my head, which my dream had made it resurface. "Albert, I have wanted to ask you a question for so long, but I'm not sure if this is the right time."

Brushing his lips against my forehead, he answered, "By all means. If this bothers you, I want to hear it now."

So I cleared my throat before I inquired, "Why didn't you ask me to stay in Chicago when I informed you of my plan to move back to Pony's Home?"

Just then, he responded with a long sigh, "I thought you would never ask, Candy."

Then he made himself comfortable on the chair and began in a reflective manner, "Back then, I knew full well that we were both free-spirited and enjoyed freedom and nature. I said to myself while I couldn't pursue my dream in my life, I should not be so selfish to make you suffer with me. In short, my reason for not keeping you in Chicago was, 'I love you, so I let you go'."

The familiar words hit me like a stone and stirred up the sentiments deep in my heart. With a thoughtful look on his face, he asked me, "Do you still remember what I said to you at Magnolia when I took you home after the so-called engagement party?"

I gave him a nod, saying, "Of course. Since that evening, I had spent a great deal of time contemplating your words until I made up my mind to leave Chicago."

He kept his silence for a moment, staring at me. Later, he explained, "After George had picked you up from the Mountain Lodge the day before the forced engagement, I had been pondering about us and our future for a long time that evening. I could sense that you had strong feelings for me despite knowing that I was your guardian, but I was hesitant to confess because I was afraid that you didn't know what to expect once you got involved with me, the patriarch of an old fashioned family with long traditions. Although I would love to have you by my side, I didn't want to drag you into a life in which I had felt suffocated by my responsibilities and burden for years, so-"

I helped him finish with my tremulous voice, "So you'd rather set me free."

With a strained smile on his face, he affirmed, "Right, or so I thought... until you told me you were going to move back to Pony's Home. I did have some debate in my mind, but I spoke to myself that I should feel happy for you that you could do something that would fulfill your life, unlike me, being trapped in a cage called 'work'."

He paused to throw me a loving glance before he carried on, "Nevertheless, I could tell that you were upset when you left my study that morning. Once I heard the heavy door click shut after you, I felt as if my dreams were shattered. My heart wanted to run after you, but my mind wouldn't let me do so. I absently stood by the window instead, staring blankly at the garden and telling myself over and over that I played no role in your future, and I should let you find your own happiness because being with me would only drag you down. When I genuinely admired your independence and your strength to do what you thought was right, you suddenly appeared in the garden as though you were giving me the last chance. After we waved at each other and you were gone out of my sight, I became aware that I might lose you forever. The next thing I knew, tears had come into my eyes..."

His voice was barely over a whisper now, his fingers fondly caressing my cheek as he regarded me with a glint in his eyes. His features began to blur as tears had swum into my eyes already although I tried to blink them away. I said, my voice trembling with emotion, "I didn't know any of these... you have never told me..."

"I love you, Candy. I always have," said Albert, his voice a little shaky. I responded by pressing my lips against his with affection, and I nuzzled my head into the crook of his neck and mumbled, "I love you too, Albert. Back then I thought you had lost your feelings for me, so that was why you could let me go that easily."

He hastily said, his arms cradling me, "Well, you know that wasn't the case at all. Seeing you disappear, I felt my eyes burning with tears. I was stunned to say the least, recalling the last time I had dropped tears was when my beloved late sister had passed away. Only then I recognized how much you meant to me. You were the only person who truly knew me and had shared the laughter and the pain with me. So I reprimanded myself harshly for letting you walk away from my life when all I did was to watch you leave."

Tears silently escaped my eyes as I remembered my emotional turbulence that day. Albert pressed me closer against him when he felt my tears on his neck, tightening his embrace. A moment later, he continued, "Therefore, I resolved to take the chance by revealing to you that I was actually your first love all along. I was afraid that I would ruin your dream because the one in your memory was as young as Anthony, but I thought even if you might reject me, at least I wouldn't regret for the rest of my life."

I loosened his grip and straightened up myself. As I fixed my eyes at his beautiful orbs, I commented, "I'm so glad that you did. Sometimes I wonder what would have happened to us if you had continued to conceal this fact from me."

He returned my gaze and answered me with a rueful smile, "Who knows? But in a sense, your departure triggered my decision to disclose this long kept secret to you, which I had been putting off unconsciously."

"You know, I didn't mean to threaten you by leaving Chicago," I said quietly.

He swiftly shook his head and asserted, "No no... quite the contrary. In fact, it was a wake up call for me, and I should thank you. I don't remember now how long I had been waiting for you on Pony's Hill that day, pondering what the best way to reveal my secret to you was. When you appeared at last, I saw tears streaming down your cheeks, so I gathered up my courage to speak up. To my relief, you grasped the meaning of my words within a very short time, and I felt like a weight had just been lifted off my shoulders when you began running towards me with an ecstatic grin on your face, indicating that you were accepting me for who I was."

Then I promptly said to him, "Albert, do you know how much your outstretched arms meant to me? Before then, I had thought that I hadn't been good enough to be your special someone to share your life with, but those arms told me that you were willing to receive me into your life, and I was happy beyond words."

He gaped at me with wide eyes, clearly shocked. I guessed he had never thought about that from this point of view, so I added, "Therefore, your subsequent letters to me carried deep meanings. You opened up and wrote a lot about yourself, your childhood pain and most of all your inner feelings. My tears often stained your long letters because you were finally sharing a portion of your sandwich with me."

"Oh yes... the sandwich that we shared up on a tree," he remarked in a contemplative tone.

I released a sigh before I said, "Yes, while we were sitting together on that tree, you proposed that I share my anguish and happiness with you from that moment on. Yet you didn't share yours with me, not until after you had revealed the secret that you were my prince."

At this point, he declared with a serious face, "Candy, back then I had really meant it with all my heart that I wanted to share your burden in life."

"But you were hiding the truth from me..." I retorted in a sad tone, my eyes fastened on his.

With his penetrating gaze studying my face, he asked, "But now you know why I did that, don't you, Candy?"

"Yes," I whispered as I felt tears at the back of my eyes again. My short reply was nearly inaudible, but I knew he heard me.

Then he grabbed both my hands and explained in earnest, "I was afraid that I would lose you or scare you away, so I'd rather hide the truth in order to continue the heart-warming life with you."

I cast him a pardoning smile, but a slow tear coursed down my cheek nonetheless. Albert saw my tear and used his thumb to gently wipe it away for me. Then I added, nearly stammering, "But then you had rather leave me without a trace... instead of telling me the truth about who you are."

With his eyes focused on mine, he beseeched desperately, "Candy, I had no excuse. So once again, please forgive me."

When I nodded at him, he continued to wipe the remnants of my tears on my face with his tender fingers and said, "I have promised you before that I would be truthful to you. Let me confirm my promise now. On top of that, I will do my best to be there for you and I won't leave you anymore."

_I swear by the moon and the stars in the sky_

_And I swear like the shadow that's by your side_

_..._

_I see the questions in your eyes_

_I know what's weighing on your mind_

_You can be sure I know my heart_

_..._

_'Cause I'll stand beside you through the years_

_You'll only cry those happy tears_

_And though I make mistakes_

_I'll never break your heart_

_..._

_And I swear by the moon and the stars in the sky_

_I'll be there_

_I swear like a shadow that's by your side_

_I'll be there_

_..._

_For better or worse, till death do us part_

_I'll love you with every beat of my heart_

_And I swear_

_..._

_I'll give you everything I can_

_I'll build your dreams with these two hands_

_We'll hang some memories on the walls_

_..._

_And when just the two of us are there_

_You won't have to ask if I still care_

_'Cause as the time turns the page, my love won't age at all_

_..._

_And I swear by the moon and the stars in the sky_

_I swear (and I swear) like the shadow that's by your side_

_I'll be there_

_..._

_For better or worse, till death do us part_

_I'll love you with every beat of my heart_

_And I swear_

_..._

_I swear (I swear) by the moon and the stars in the sky_

_I'll be there_

_I swear like the shadow that's by your side_

_I'll be there_

_..._

_For better or worse, till death do us part_

_I'll love you with every (single) beat of my heart_

_I swear, I swear, oh, I, swear _[1]

His confession melted my insides, and my breath hitched in my throat. Then he added, his voice resolute, "I also promise that I will let you share my burdens and my joys. Would you do the same to me, Candy?"

I took a deep breath and answered with determination, "Yes!"

Next, we began stroking each other's face with the gentleness of our hands. As I looked deep into his eyes, I felt that I could drown in those blue pools of light. I knew it was past midnight, and Albert was probably exhausted by now, but the fact that we could bare our hearts and souls to each other on this special day was extremely significant to me.

Then I heard his sweet voice, "Candy, did I tell you that you are pretty even when you cry? But of course you look prettier when you smile."

"Albert..." I whispered, my face breaking into a smile.

He genially said, cupping my face in his hands, "When I was away, I missed everything about you."

"So did I," I replied at once while I raked through his wavy hair in a doting manner.

"I missed your freckles, your smile, your eyes and your hair." His hand moved to the back of my neck before he showered light kisses on my nose, my cheeks, my hair, and my closed eyelids.

"In fact, I dreamt of kissing you every night too," he breathed to my mouth before capturing my bottom lip and nibbled it very softly and lovingly, sending shivers down my spine. So I responded by gently tugging his top lip between mine, and we alternated taking each other's bottom and top lips for a while until he finally sealed my lips with his. As we kissed each other with abandon, we left our thoughts behind, and our hands were eagerly exploring each other's bodies as if we were making up for the lost time apart. In no time, my desire for him flared in me like fire, and I snuck my hands under his suit jacket, parting it and sliding it down his shoulders, so that I could feel his body beneath his thin shirt when my hands roamed across his broad shoulders and muscular chest. I felt myself melting into his arms as his kisses were getting hungrier and more demanding. While I struggled to remove his tie for him, his hands glided restlessly up and down my spine, pressing me possessively to his athletic frame, which made my heart race like crazy. All the while our lips continued to lock with each other with ardor, his tongue lacing with mine. Before I knew it, his kisses already traveled from my lips to my neck. As he softly grazed my flesh where my pulse beat frantically, a moan of pleasure escaped my throat. At this instant, he abruptly stopped his motion and pleaded, his voice croaking hoarsely, "Shall we go to our bedroom now?"

I couldn't have been faster to agree to his request, my arms already circled around his neck. I saw the burning desires in his eyes, and I wanted him so badly that it physically hurt. He slid one arm under my knees and the other behind my back, lifting me up effortlessly from the chair. When he was carrying me into the master bedroom on the same floor, my eyes had never once left his sculpted face, and my heart palpitated in anticipation like a jackhammer.

As soon as we crossed the threshold of our bedroom, Albert closed the door with his foot and brought me to our bed in hurried steps. Once he gently lowered me down, we sat on the edge of the bed and began kissing with passion, undressing each other hastily like young children who were impatiently unwrapping their long-awaited Christmas presents.

Oh how I missed being intimate with my love-to feel his hot, naked flesh against my own. Tonight it meant all the more to me as we celebrated our first anniversary by making love with incredible intensity, the most beautiful way God intended for a man and his wife to express their love and devotion to each other.

Albert always managed to make me feel so special, so cherished and loved. He was great at using his mouth and hands to gratify me, even getting better with time. I moaned and groaned helplessly when the sensations built up, and I got lost in pure ecstasy when we did our dance in perfect rhythm and harmony, our bodies melting together as one. After I cried out my satisfaction, he soon let out a loud groan of pleasure. Then he collapsed on top of me and kissed my cheek before burying his face into the crook of my neck, sweating and panting.

Completely drained and satisfied, we cuddled each other afterwards as we allowed our overheated bodies to cool down, listening to each other's rapid breathing. I buried my face into the searing warmth of his solid chest, holding him with my arms while lying on top of him. Feeling his hand stroke my hair and his heart beat strongly against my cheek, I purred, "I love you, Albert."

"Love you too, Candy," he said, still heaving. "You have made me the happiest man on earth."

I raised my head slightly to look at him. A full smile curved his mouth, his eyes regarding me with tenderness. So I snuggled up to him and gave him a peck on his lips before laying my head on his shoulder. He sniffed my hair, taking in my scent, and softly kissed the crown of my head.

A moment of silence later, he gently ran his fingers through my hair and commented in a soft, amiable tone, "It felt so good making love to you, Candy."

"I'm _so_ glad to hear that," I replied, feeling content. Then I propped up a little, clutching his face with my hands, and bent down to whisper against his lips, "You're such a great lover, Albert."

So we kissed again, a long, lingering one this time, our arms fastening around each other as though we couldn't express our love enough.

When we finally broke off the kiss afterwards, Albert remarked, panting slightly, "I sometimes wonder if this is just a sweet dream, and that I will eventually wake up one day to find that I'm still just as lonely as before and you are living at Pony's Home, far away from Chicago."

I shook my head firmly and reassured him, "It's my turn to tell you that this is _not_ a dream, my prince. I will stick with you till the end, and don't ever think of getting rid of me."

He let out an amused chuckle and tucked me in his arms. He pressed his face in my hair and took a deep breath, saying, "Candy, I love the smell of your hair. I missed it so much during the trip that it was driving me insane."

"Just my hair?" I asked him with my eyebrows raised teasingly, pulling myself away from him while caressing his chest with my fingertips.

"Of course not. You want me to be explicit?" he came back with a riposte, grinning wide and his eyes twinkling mischievously.

I laughed out loud, and he drew me back to him and kissed me one more time before letting me go. Then snuggling each other, we both stayed mute for a while. We weren't asleep yet, but we weren't entirely awake either. By now, my heart's wild thumping had dwindled. I surrendered to my fatigue and said in a sleepy voice, "Good night, my prince, happy anniversary once again."

He responded, sounding tired as well, "Happy anniversary to you too, my princess, and good night."

Almost as soon as I closed my eyelids, I drifted off to a deep, contented slumber.

(to be continued...)

=o=o=o=

**Author's note:**

I was inspired by Phil Collins' song "Against All Odds" when I was writing Albert's confession.

This chapter is mainly my imagination based on the manga and the spoilers from the Candy Candy Final Story (CCFS) and the old Candy Candy novel, especially the letter correspondence of Albert and Candy in both novels. I didn't include the references here because the facts were scattered everywhere. If you're interested to find out more, please feel free to contact me.

In CCFS, it wasn't explicit whom Candy married to, but I strongly believed that Albert and Candy got married not long after her last letter to Albert in the CCFS epilogue. That particular letter plus her letter to Anthony right after their trip to Lakewood gave me the feeling that Candy was ready for a new life with Albert (because she decided to let Albert keep her old diary, which contained all references about Terry, and she could finally write to Anthony, talking a lot about Albert and Rosemary's marrying for love despite receiving strong opposition from the family). If not, there should be more letters between Albert and Candy since they were clearly in love already.

I'm not an expert in CCFS at all, so I have made an assumption in this story that Albert and Candy got married before Susanna's death. My reason is that one and a half year after her death, Terry didn't know how to reach Candy, which could mean that she had married and possibly had moved across the ocean already. Of course, this is just my interpretation of the spoilers.

To those of you who have asked me about the status of my long story "Love Never Fails":

First of all, I really appreciate your continued interest in my long story! Rest assured that I'm just taking a break from that to write this short story because this story plot had been nagging me for months while I was writing "Love Never Fails". Therefore, I will resume writing "Love Never Fails" after I have finished writing "It Must Have Been Love". Thank you all once again!

**Footnote:**

[1] "I Swear" by All-4-One (1994).


	5. Soulmates

**Disclaimer:** Candy Candy and all characters belong to Kyoko Mizuki, images to Yumiko Igarashi and anime to Toei Animation.

**Note: **This extra long final chapter contains quite a few flashbacks, which are interwoven into the present or past events. I'm sorry if you find this confusing, but I felt this was an efficient way to explore the intriguing relationship of Candy and Albert while keeping the story short.

Reviews are very welcome! I'd like to thank those readers who have encouraged me so far by reviews or private messages, including those who have left anonymous reviews as guests. I appreciate the feedback from you all.

In addition, my sincere gratitude goes to my beta readers for their suggestions and the effort that they put in. This story would not have been possible without you all!

-Ms Puddleglum

**Chapter 5: Soulmates**

My eyes opened drowsily the next day to find the hazy, pre-dawn light filling our bedroom. I glanced around, stretching lazily at the same time, and noticed that most candles were burnt out by now. Lying face up beside me was my handsome prince, who was sleeping soundly like a baby. His masculine frame was covered under the blanket, and his wavy blond hair was disheveled. _Poor Albert... the tension of the business trip must have finally caught up with you._

Last night had seemed like a dream as I hadn't expected Albert to come home for our anniversary. Plus, we had talked a lot although I could tell that he had been tired from the trip. It only signified how much he always cared about me and my feelings.

_What a bliss to be able to wake up next to my beloved! _I indulged myself with the pleasure of looking at his peaceful countenance. Even watching his chest rise and fall rhythmically made me smile. Albert was my devoted husband, so I knew I was the only woman who had this privilege. I reached out and carefully brushed the hair off his face as I always loved to admire his chiseled features in repose. Right at this moment, he stirred in his sleep and turned to lie on his side, facing me with his eyes still closed. The blanket thus retreated, revealing his toned upper body. My eyes automatically traversed his bare chest and stopped where the scars were, the solid proof that he was willing to risk his life for me when necessary.

This reminded me of the first time I had touched his scars. On our wedding night, Albert had carried me over the threshold to the bedroom and put me down on a special seat in front of the dresser. Then, sitting right beside me, he had offered to massage my feet for me since I had been in heels all day. It had felt great to stretch and rest my legs, so I had expressed my appreciation for his thoughtfulness and considerations. He had passed me a sweet smile in response and shifted to sit behind me, reaching his hands around my neck to help me take off the heavy necklace and earrings. After that, he had gently massaged my tense shoulders and said in a tender voice, "Just relax, Candy."

Raising my hands to cover his, I had thought about telling him how I could relax when my heart was thumping like mad in anticipation and nervousness for a while already. Just then, he had placed soft kisses on my nape, sending a surge of warmth through my body. Before I could react, he had withdrawn his hands from mine and moved on undoing my hair with gentle hands, letting my golden locks cascade down my back and over my shoulders. Watching me in the mirror, he had drawn in sharp breath and praised huskily, "Candy, you look stunning with your hair down!"

So I had spun around, forcing myself to meet his penetrating gaze, and commented, "I didn't have a chance to tell you today that you look dashing in kilt too, my Prince on the Hill. The last time I saw you in one was when you were a teenager."

His eyes had gleamed with delight upon hearing my compliment. After staring at me intensely for a moment, he had surprisingly suggested, his voice urging but soft, "Candy, would you like to help me undress?"

Swallowing hard and blushing, I had complied with his request. With sweaty palms and racing pulse, I had removed the accessories one by one, starting with the sporran, the hat, the plaid brooch, and the fly plaid. After removing his jacket, I had given him a shy glance, nervously biting my bottom lip before unbuttoning his shirt. Sliding it off his shoulders to expose his well-built chest under the dim candlelight, my eyes had been caught by those scars on his otherwise flawless torso. My shaky hand had stretched out to touch them, but I had hesitated. Because of that, Albert had swiftly taken my hand and placed it over his throbbing chest, smiling at me. While my fingers had been lightly tracing those scars that marred his skin near his heart, I had asked him in a tremulous voice, "Have you ever thought about what if the lion... you know... you're so important to your family..."

Regarding me with unwavering eyes, he had answered in a reflective tone, "It's true that I had already recovered my memory, Candy, but I didn't think twice at that critical moment. I just knew you were in danger."

Profoundly moved by his steadfast love for me, I had exclaimed with tears burning at the back of my eyes, "I owed my life to you again and again, my prince... how am I going to live without you?"

"I won't leave you anymore, my princess. Till death do us part," he had replied ardently. I had hastened to cover his mouth, shaking my head vigorously, and pleaded, "Don't mention that word again, Albert. You're making me scared."

Nodding with an amorous smile lingering on his lips, his eyes had reflected how much he had desired me then. The next instant he had begun kissing and fondling me with affection and passion, gingerly undressing me out of my wedding gown and pausing every now and then to plant butterfly kisses against my gradually exposed skin. I couldn't stop the annoying shivering, feeling that my heart would burst out of my ribcage any second. My face, burning from flushing, must have turned crimson red by the time he had removed the last piece of clothing on me. His lips had parted in awe and his eyes had widened, taking in my sight admiringly. Breathing rather heavily, he had managed to speak in a low, guttural voice, "My dearest wife... what a beautiful woman you are..."

Nothing could make me feel more cherished than being enclosed by his protective arms. His touch had been so loving, and his kisses on my body had woken up all my senses. My trembling had ceased before long. Instead, I had felt fierce desire and love for my dearest husband with every core of my being. All the while we had whispered endearments to each other, consummating our love for the first time. That night was indeed one of the most precious memories in my life, and no wonder Albert had thought that I had dreamed about this last night.

Meanwhile, I just never got tired watching my husband sleep, and I had to suppress my urge to touch his morning shadow, which I didn't get to see very much because he was an early riser and usually shaved before I woke up. Another reason was that he was often on business trips, most of the time only a few days but sometimes it could be weeks.

Then, I saw his eyelids flutter, sluggishly blinking his eyes. It didn't take him long to notice that I was adoring him with my eyes, so a satisfied smile slowly spread across his face. He murmured, "Good morning, my darling princess. Did you have a nice, restful sleep?"

"It couldn't have been better. How about you, my prince charming?" I answered his question, reaching out to trace his stubbled chin with my fingertips. _His smile is so lovely... it makes me want to kiss him right now..._

Oblivious to my inner thought, he stroked my nose lightly and uttered, "Same here. In fact, I haven't had such a great sleep for weeks."

A contented smile came to my face after hearing that, so I connected my lips with his fleetingly and teased, "Tell me, Little Bert... is it because I was with you?"

With love in his blue eyes, he grinned at my mentioning of the nickname Rosemary had given him and placed a tender kiss on the corner of my mouth as his answer. So I snuggled up close to him, and he responded by lying face up again such that I could place my head against his shoulder, resting my hand on his scars. He also wrapped his arm around my back, fondly running his fingers through my hair. For the time being, we simply savoured each other's comforting body warmth and felt no need to say anything.

After a while, I asked in a soothing voice, "Albert, are you tired? It's not yet dawn. Maybe I should let you sleep?"

He replied in a matter-of-fact tone, "Well, I'm wide awake right now. Besides, I'm taking a day off today to be with you, Candy, and no one will interrupt us, not even George."

We ended up laughing together, remembering how Albert's revelation as Prince on the Hill had been abruptly cut short by George. Albert had later joked that George had often got in his way at the right moment.

When the laughter dissipated, we gazed at each other with mild nostalgia. A short moment later, Albert remarked, "The memory of that particular spring day on Pony's Hill will certainly stay in our hearts and minds for many years to come, Candy, just like our first encounter so long ago."

I couldn't have agreed with him more. Back then, after spinning me around rejoicing at our reunion, Albert had gradually slowed down while hugging me close. Still quivering with euphoria and wondering if it had been only a dream, I had buried my face in his vibrating chest and mumbled with emotion, "Albert, so you're my Prince on the Hill!"

My prince had reacted by tightening his grip around me and murmured with a hoarse voice, "Yes... I am."

With my heart bursting with love and gratitude for him, I had wanted to talk to him forever. Unfortunately, much to our chagrin, George had appeared out of nowhere and urged Albert to return to Chicago because of some urgent business matters. Even though Albert had originally planned to spend a long time talking with me on Pony's Hill, he must go with George at once. We both had been extremely disappointed in this unexpected change of plans, and I couldn't help glaring at George.

It had been very tough for me to see Albert leave right after his important confession. Feeling terribly upset, I had followed him all the way down the hill. Before getting in the car, my prince had held me tight once more, whispering to my ear, "Candy, I will surely come again and stay longer!"

I had remained standing at my spot until the car had disappeared from my sight, feeling as though Prince on the Hill had vanished again, but his embrace and promise had given me solace and hope. When I had returned to Pony's Home afterwards, I had been so lost in thought and decided not to tell my friends about the precious reunion with my prince. After they had gone, I had spent the rest of the evening gazing at the stars in rapture, replaying the joyous event on the hill over and over in my head until I had picked up my pen to write my first letter to my prince. [1]

Presently, Albert was staring blankly at the ceiling, like he was reminiscing as well. From what he had confessed to me last night, I was so relieved that he had resolved to let me know his secret about being Prince on the Hill. So I pulled myself slightly away from him and propped myself on my elbow, breaking his train of thought, "Albert?"

He chuckled and cast me a loving glance as he shifted to lie on his side, facing me. "Yes, Candy?"

"Do you know how thrilled I was when I realized that the prince I had met in my childhood turned out to be my close friend who had been by my side all these years? Not only that, we have fallen in love with each other..."

This wasn't the first time I had said something along this line, so he swiftly finished my statement for me with confidence, "...as if fate has brought us together!"

"That's right!" I declared loudly with a firm nod. Then I gathered perhaps I should change the topic in order not to bore him out. As I saw the first rays of sunlight filter through the windows, I raised a valid question, "Are you hungry, my dear?"

Before Albert could answer, I slipped my hand under the blanket to playfully draw circles on his solid abdomen. He instantly grabbed my hand and snickered, "Candy, you know it tickles."

I said, giggling, "I know, so that's why I'm doing it."

Highly amused, he broke out chortling, still holding my hand in his. Later, he answered my question, "Yes, I'm a little hungry now, but tolerable. And you? Would you want to eat something, sweetheart?"

"Not at this moment," I replied in a lazy tone, and in a voice barely over a whisper, I admitted, "I'd rather stay in bed with you the whole morning-"

I was interrupted by his sudden kiss, which sent tingles down my spine. I smiled against his lips and kissed him back, cupping his face in my hands. Next, he held my shoulders to flip me over, so that my head was nestled in the soft pillows as he lay on top of me, deepening our kiss. Feeling the weight of his body pressed upon me, my hands eagerly traversed the familiar contours of his back as I returned his fervent kiss, letting my lips morph with his. Unfortunately, something dawned on me right at this moment, and I had to gently push him away to stop our snogging.

"What's wrong, Candy? Did I hurt you?" Albert asked with his eyebrows creased, panting slightly, and his voice was full of concern and confusion.

"No no!" I assured him with a strained smile, shaking my head, and hastily explained, "It's just that I realized that I have forgotten about the present from Aunt Elroy. She has sent someone to deliver a huge gift to us from Lakewood."

"And what's so urgent about it?" he inquired, genuinely perplexed.

"Actually, I don't know, but it came with a brief note that says something like 'Happy Anniversary to my nephew and his wife. Open this at your earliest convenience.'"

"So?" prompted Albert, raising his eyebrow quizzically.

"Hence, I think we should open it now, just in case," I urged while sliding off the bed, but without warning he snaked his arms around my bare torso from behind and enticingly pulled me back to him, making me yelp with a mixture of pleasure and surprise.

Albert then whispered huskily to my ear, "My dear wife, my aunt's present can wait."

Right after that, with his left arm placed securely around my waist, he raised his right hand to softly brush my tresses away, exposing my neck. I could feel his hot breath caressing my cheek as he lightly nibbled my earlobe, which made me gasp and weakened my resolve significantly. Unable to resist his advance, I hopelessly let him draw me even closer to him, and his left hand began to slowly massage my soft navel, working its way up. At the same time, his mouth traveled down along my neck, leaving traces of kisses, and I moaned and shuddered in desire and excitement, heaving in anticipation already. Then he grazed the crook of my shoulder, and the fingertips of his free hand subtly stroked my collarbone while moving in a downward motion. I was rapidly melting and felt like yielding to him right now, but I managed to beg him in a weak whimper, "Albert, _please stop..._ I just want some peace of mind."

I didn't expect him to stop right away, but he did. As I whirled to face him, he dropped his arms as if defeated and sighed with exaggeration afterwards. He always put my feelings first, which was normally great, but I felt somewhat disappointed this time, and I didn't know what I really wanted at this moment. Then he regarded me, pretending to look rejected. "So you don't want me now?"

"William!" I called his first name with feigned seriousness to conceal my disappointment, imitating Aunt Elroy's long face, before I burst into laughing myself. He chortled out loud as well, shaking his head in resignation. When our laughter subsided, he kindly offered, "I will go get her present, Candy. Just let me know where it is."

So I instructed him how to locate it among the numerous gifts in our spacious bedroom. "It's the biggest box stamped with the Ardlay's insignia. You can't miss it, Albert."

"Ok," he said while he got out of bed to fetch his black morning robe, the same one he had worn when I had discovered his true identity in the Lakewood Villa. Originally, he had wanted to buy a pair of matching robes of a lighter color for us before our wedding, but I had wanted him to keep that black one because it carried some meaning to me. Therefore, he had bought a matching black one for me instead.

When he passed me my robe before putting on his, I couldn't help but fix my eyes at his perfectly defined body, which was very alluring, even after seeing it so many times. As he was about to tie the belt around his waist, he observed that I was stupidly staring at him, so he flashed a smug smile and deliberately left his robe loose, sitting down beside me on the bed. "Candy, just wondering... would you like to join me in a shower before opening my aunt's present?"

"William Albert Ardlay!" I snapped as hot blood rushed to my face, calling him by his full name with mock anger while I quickly slid my arm into the sleeve of my robe to hide my embarrassment of being caught staring at him.

"Fine, Mrs. Ardlay!" he said out loud, barely able to hide his grin at my near indignant tone, and finished fastening his belt. Sometimes he liked to jokingly address me as 'Mrs. Ardlay' just like I occasionally teased him by calling him 'Uncle William' or 'grandpa'.

Then he stood up and said, "Let me take a shower first before I go find her present."

Raking my fingers through my tangled hair, I instantly countered, "Can I go first? My hair must be a mess now."

"Your hair looks great to me, Candy, it is so vibrant and luscious!" he commented with an irresistable smile before he asked, "But anyway, are you sure you don't want to join me? I promise I will behave myself."

I blushed even more but didn't answer him this time, and the next thing I knew he gleefully picked me up and cradled me in his arms like a baby, causing me to squeal with delight. Of course I didn't protest at all and let him carry me to our ensuite bathroom. Albert did keep his promise to behave, but it was me who couldn't keep my hands to myself. Just like that, our desires for each other flared, and we somehow ended up in bed again, losing ourselves in ecstasy.

I was probably more exhausted than I had realized, so I fell asleep in his arms while cuddling with him afterwards. It was nearly midmorning when I awoke again, but this time I was alone in bed by myself. Immediately I shot up in the wide bed as a bleak thought came to my mind, _it was just a dream, a wild fantasy. _

Feeling groggy and muddled, I was startled at the sound of the door swung open, and soon came my husband wearing his pajamas, the ones I had bought for him when we were at Magnolia, carrying a breakfast tray in his hands. _So it was real! My prince is actually home with me!_

"Morning, sleeping beauty," he greeted with a radiant smile. "Right timing! I was thinking whether I should wake you up with a kiss," he joked as he placed the breakfast tray in front of me on the bed before sitting down next to me. He smelled so fresh from his shower and looked very charming with his naturally wavy hair slightly wet.

Albert had made a delicious looking breakfast, and it had been a long while since he had last made us breakfast, so I exclaimed with excitement, "Albert, how wonderful and thoughtful of you!" Then I expressed my appreciation by winding my arms around his neck to give him a good-morning kiss.

After that, he put my morning robe on me. "You might catch cold, Candy," he kindly said.

I thanked him and put it on properly. Stretching and yawning, I asked, "So did you go back to sleep, Albert?"

"Yes I did, just like you!" he teased with a wink and suggested, "Shall we eat? I'm starving right now."

My stomach growled really loudly right at this moment, which was so embarrassing. Without bothering to hide his grin, he sniggered, "I guess I got the answer to my question now."

While we were devouring the scrumptious breakfast, Albert told me many interesting things that had happened during his business trip with George. They had traveled to some major cities in Europe exploring business opportunities, and the prospect of expanding Ardlay's business over there was looking good.

"So does that mean you will spend more time traveling to Europe in the near future?" I questioned, trying to sound placid and cover my sadness.

Albert saw through me as expected and nodded quietly, wiping his mouth because he had done eating. My stomach was full by now, so I wanted to distract myself by putting the breakfast tray away, but he had taken it before I did and simply put it aside.

With a tender smile gracing his lips, he said to me, "But the good news is, I'd like to take my love with me."

Though baffled, I was elated to hear that nonetheless. "Are you serious?"

"Absolutely!" he affirmed, wrapping his arm around my shoulder affectionately. "Remember in one of my letters I asked if you wanted to travel with me?"

"Of course I remember that, and I eagerly asked you to take me along in my reply." [2]

"So that is my anniversary gift to my dearest wife," he finished with an enigmatic smile.

"I still don't get it. What exactly do you mean?" I asked, obviously confounded.

Seeing my puzzled look, his eyes focused on mine for a moment before he patiently explained, "Our business in London is doing very well now, and it's easier for us to expand the business in Europe if we base in London. Since I want to be able to see you more often, I plan to purchase a house near London for us, but if you prefer to stay in Chicago-"

"No!" I cried out, interrupting his statement without any hesitation. "I will go wherever you go, my prince! It doesn't really matter where we live as long as we are together." Just imagining spending another few weeks without seeing him was agonizing.

Albert looked relieved, and his blue eyes illuminated at once. Then we hugged each other very tightly like parting was no longer bearable. He said, "I can't stand long business trips without you by my side anymore, so let's search for our dream house in the vicinity of London together."

"Oh Albert... nothing can make me happier than spending more time with you from now on!" I said dreamily, resting my head on his shoulder. For the time being, I was more than content to know that he wanted my company when he would start new business adventure in a different continent.

A moment later, I inquired curiously, "What about the business here in Chicago?"

"Good question, Candy. You know our company had numerous employees and the business had extended to other parts in America, so I can't possibly oversee all of them on a daily basis. Therefore, unlike my father who took almost everything on his shoulder, I have learned to delegate more and more responsibilities to those who have proven themselves capable and trustworthy over the years. I will come back to our headquarter in Chicago every now and then to ensure the stated business objectives are reached, but I believe these people can do well without me."

"I'm so relieved to hear that, Albert," I commented wholeheartedly. "I am always worried that you would collapse one day by working too hard!" I stated, my voice edged with fear, and broke our embrace to look him in his eyes.

So he brushed his lips against my cheek lovingly, giving my shoulders a gentle squeeze to soothe me. I grasped his arms and implored heartily, "Albert, please promise me not to overwork like your father."

He sighed as he enveloped me in his warm embrace. "Candy, I understand your concern, so I won't repeat my father's mistakes and will do my best to take care of myself."

Nodding my head to him, I buried my face in his neck. "I love you so much, and I don't want to lose you." Having said that from the bottom of my heart, I wrapped my arms around him, holding him to me with all my strength, as if to stress my point.

He then tapped my shoulder to comfort me, "I love you too, Candy, and I wish more than anything that I will grow old with you."

_Another day _

_Without your smile _

_Another day just passes by _

_But now I know _

_How much it means _

_For you to stay _

_Right here with me _

_..._

_The time we spent apart will make our love grow stronger _

_But it hurt so bad I can't take it any longer _

_..._

_I wanna grow old with you _

_I wanna die lying in your arms _

_I wanna grow old with you _

_I wanna be looking in your eyes _

_I wanna be there for you _

_Sharing in everything you do _

_I wanna grow old with you _[3]

Later, he unhurriedly loosened my grip and softly caressed my cheek, asking, "When I become a grumpy old man one day, will you push my wheelchair around and sing to me, even though I might be deaf or blind already?"

I gave him a clear nod, my face breaking into a smile. Then holding his face in my hands and regarding him fondly, I asked, "What if I become an ugly old woman one day? Will you still love me?"

My question brought a tender smile to his lips. He replied, "First and foremost, you will never look ugly to me, Candy, and-"

I cut in and pressed on, "What if I really turn ugly one day, Albert? You know, imagine my face full of wrinkles and warts."

Fastening his eyes upon my face as though he were trying to envision that, he retorted mildly a moment later, "I'll always be older and uglier, Candy. Perhaps I will even turn bald. Who knows? I didn't get to see my father pass that age..." As his voice trailed off, he opened his arms wide for me with a grim sort of smile. I took the hint and buried myself in his embrace, relishing the comfort in his arms.

Then he reassured me, "I love you no matter what happens to you, Candy."

"Same here, Albert," I responded, snuggling to him further.

Amidst our amiable silence, I heard him, "In fact, I was going to give you another surprise once we go to London, but I figure I might as well tell you now."

I was totally intrigued, and I wanted to untangle myself from him so that I could see his face, but his hands were rubbing my back affectionately, so I remained in his arms and softly demanded, "Yes, tell me now please."

"Candy, you know I had a stressful year at work, and with the new challenge ahead in a different environment, I feel that I need a break in between. Therefore, after I have made sure everything is in place at the London office, I want to spend a week with you in Scotland, just the two of us."

"What a fabulous idea!" I exclaimed with gladness and raised my head slightly so that I could see part of his face. "Are we staying in the Ardlay's villa located in Scotland?"

"Yes," he said and gave me a quick peck on my forehead.

"I remember that was where Archie and Stear had lodged during the summer holiday when we were studying at St. Paul. I wasn't invited to go and Aunt Elroy-"

I broke off, suddenly aware that I had completely forgotten about her anniversary present for us. I withdrew myself from Albert immediately and noted a faint smirk on his face. As always, he intuited my thoughts. Slapping a hand to my forehead, I cried, "Albert, why didn't you remind me?"

Shrugging, he remarked, "I have told you before that her present could wait, and aren't we having a great time so far?"

As I cleared my throat and wanted to riposte, he said, his smirk changing into a kind smile, "Sorry, Candy, I know I should have reminded you earlier. Anyway, I have found where it is but it is indeed large in size. I have also located the gifts from our close friends."

He paused here, throwing me a swift glance, and suggested, "But would you like to take your shower first before we unwrap them one by one?"

I agreed right away, "Definitely. I do need a shower to tame my hair."

"Please go ahead then. I will bring the gifts to our anteroom and wait for you there, ok?"

During shower, while wondering what kind of present Aunt Elroy had given us, my mind somehow drifted back to the time right after Albert had proposed to me.

=o=o=o=

After spending a marvelous time together in Lakewood on a fine spring day, Albert drove me back to Pony's Home that night, but neither of us wanted to leave each other yet. Then I suggested that we go to Pony's Hill as a newly-engaged couple. As we were walking hand-in-hand up the hill under the bright moon, the atmosphere was so romantic that we both felt the urge to kiss. Thus, as soon as we found that particular tree where we had first met many years ago, Albert leaned his back against its trunk and extended his long legs out. Then he gathered me in his arms and pressed his soft lips on my cheek. Within seconds, we began kissing each other, losing ourselves in our passionate embrace and ignoring our surroundings. A blissful while later, when the cold evening breeze blew, swaying the tree branches with green leaves above us, my fiancé tore himself away from me reluctantly and said, "Let me take you home."

Then he asked Miss Pony and Sister Lane for my hand in marriage, and they smiled from ear to ear and warmly accepted him, exchanging satisfied glances with each other. After that, he expressed his wish to take me to Chicago temporarily, and my foster mothers consented to my accompanying him to meet his aunt in the Ardlay's mansion to make our announcement together.

Albert stayed at Pony's Home for the night but he slept at the guest room, a tiny bedroom added during the renovation. On our way to Chicago the next morning, we dropped by Happy Martin Clinic first. [4] Since Dr. Martin had recently hired another nurse, he had no problem letting me take a few days off and heartily congratulated us on our engagement. "Finally, I got to see this happening! I've been wondering what's taking you two so long!"

Since I had been residing at Pony's Home and showed up only at important family occasions, Great Aunt Elroy had not suspected that her nephew and I had been seeing each other on a regular basis and exchanging letters in between. Therefore, when she heard that Albert had already annulled the adoption and was planning to marry me in summer with or without her consent, she couldn't take the shocking news at all.

"William, you're undoubtedly out of your mind! This will cause a scandal in Chicago!" she hollered with all her might, pulling herself up from her chair.

With his stature towering over her, Albert did not fret and remained poised. Like him, I had expected the worst, so I strived to appear nonchalant. After Albert and I had exchanged an understanding glance, he spoke up in a level tone, "Aunt Elroy, let me clarify this. We have come here today to inform you of our engagement and the wedding plan, not to seek your approval on this matter. Candy and I will get married regardless of what people say."

As the family patriarch, Albert apparently had the upper hand, so Great Aunt could only look at him speechless, her lips quivering with anger and her face was contorted with rage. Then she turned to me instead and gave me a fierce glare, bellowing in a condescending tone, "Candice, how dare you? Who do you think you are?"

Right after saying that, she shifted her focus back to Albert, pointing her accusing finger at me, "William, you're thoroughly bewitched by this _orphan girl_, who has brought shame and disgrace to the family!"

Albert held my hand even more firmly and declared with a stern voice, "Aunt Elroy, you'd better stop insulting my fiancée, and I demand an apology right now."

Great Aunt Elroy stared at Albert with incredulous eyes, fuming and offended. Since she was apparently at a loss for words, Albert remarked with a straight face, his voice steady, "When I was younger, I told you I would only marry for love, and I was dead serious. Therefore, I will marry no one but Candy."

Great Aunt Elroy began heaving convulsively. Clutching her chest, she raised her volume even more to strongly express her objection, "This is utterly ridiculous and outrageous! You sounded just like Rosemary, and I won't let history repeat itself again!"

A sarcastic chuckle slipped out of his mouth. Albert retorted composedly, "My aunt, elopement is our last resort because I want to give Candy a proper wedding, but I won't rule out that possibility if we have no other choice. Alternatively, you might want to find someone else to replace me as the head of the family..."

Before he could finish, Great Aunt Elroy astonishingly collapsed on the floor, unresponsive and fainted. Being a nurse, I suspected that it could have been stroke due to her high blood pressure, so we immediately rushed her to St. Joanna hospital. Unfortunately, she became partially paralyzed after that. Her right hand were stuck in a clenched fist position, and her right leg was so weak that she could no longer control her leg voluntarily. Yet Dr. Leonard believed there was still hope for her to be able to use her right hand and leg again as long as she was willing to do retraining exercise on the affected muscle groups.

After suffering from stroke, Great Aunt Elroy was bound to a wheelchair, so she retired from the family business and shut herself off in Lakewood. I volunteered myself to take care of her, but she vehemently rejected me, so Albert hired a nurse to take care of her. As a result, we postponed our wedding for a few months, and I went back to Pony's Home.

But that nurse couldn't endure Great Aunt Elroy's violent temper, and she quit her job within a week. Albert then hired one after another and no nurse seemed to be able to help Madam Elroy for more than a week, which brought so much headache to Albert. Therefore, without letting my fiancé know, I resigned from Happy Martin Clinic and told my foster mothers about my decision. Then I showed up at Lakewood one day and began taking care of Great Aunt Elroy together with the nurse whom Albert had hired.

Though I felt sorry to see her in this condition, so old and sick, she was more insufferable than I had expected, even much worse than Mr. McGregor. On top of that, she didn't spend a day without blaming her accident on me. Sometimes she forcefully pushed me away when I was feeding her, making me drop everything on the floor. Even Ruby wept when she saw this and quickly helped me to clean up. Just like the previous nurses, the nurse whom I worked with decided to leave because she found the job too distressing, and that was when Albert found out about me.

Within a few days, he came to visit me in Lakewood. As soon as he saw me, he took me in his arms for a long time in silence, and I felt such inner peace in his loving embrace that I didn't care what was going to happen anymore. Later, he expressed his deep appreciation and gratitude to me for my care and support. I told him that it was my optimism and stubbornness that somehow helped me through this although I cried and prayed every night for Great Aunt Elroy to open her eyes to see me in a different light. Regardless of her attitude towards me, I resolutely kept my silence and tried to be as tolerant as I could, even massaging her affected limbs frequently and encouraging her to do her retraining exercise, albeit painful and fruitless.

In the following months, my fiancé made every effort to visit us as much as possible. I could sense that Great Aunt gradually relented because she had ceased blaming me for her current condition, although she rarely talked and still kept her stoic expression most of the time.

One day near the end of summer, while I was pushing her wheelchair through the manicured garden, she spoke to me, "Candice, it's time for you to stop calling me Great Aunt Elroy."

I gasped and responded in a troubled tone, frowning a little, "Why? Have I done anything wrong?"

Then she explained that the adoption had long been annulled. My heart sank upon hearing this, so I cautiously asked, "So you want me to call you Madam Elroy instead?"

What she said next made my heart jump for joy. "You should call me Aunt Elroy from now on, Candice. Aren't you and William getting married soon? Have you set the date?"

In other words, she gave us her blessing. For the first time in my life, I hugged her warmly, and she didn't flinch either. As a matter of fact, after spending a few months taking care of her, I had started treating her like my grandmother already.

"Yes, we have planned to get married on a special day in autumn." Then she asked me what was so special about that day, and I revealed that it was the day when Albert had escaped from St. Joanna but agreed to let me take care of him until he recovered. She wanted me to give more details, so I began telling her how I had run into him in the hospital, unconscious and amnesiac, and why he had decided to leave Room 0 later.

"Did you have feelings for him back then already?" she questioned, scrutinizing my face.

I shook my head and replied, "Yes and no. For some reason, I had always liked him since we had met near the waterfall and felt some connection with him. For example, when I received his letter in London after he had left for Africa, I actually missed him. Therefore, knowing that he was amnesiac and sick, I simply couldn't let him wander around without a shelter. To me, he was like a dear big brother back then, and I truly wanted to be by his side until his memory would come back one day."

Since that day, Aunt Elroy had not only relaxed her attitude toward me, but also asked me lots of questions about Albert and the time we had lived together as brother and sister. Only then I realized that Aunt Elroy knew so little about her nephew, and she hadn't once tried his cooking.

On a nice, sunny day with a gentle breeze blowing, I casually brought up the incident about our first encounter on Pony's Hill many years ago when I had been just a child. Aunt Elroy was more than flabbergasted because she had always thought that we had first met near the waterfall in Lakewood when William had rescued me from drowning.

"Candice, you probably don't know how terrified we all were when we found out that our young master had escaped from the mansion wearing such costume. The household had been in uproar for hours until George brought him back safely. When I later discovered that William had somehow lost his badge, which had been passed down from his late father, I was quite upset because it was something that only real Ardlay's boys could keep. Yet I dared not speak any harsh word to him in case he would run away again."

Thus, I apprised her that I was the one who had found his badge and had kept it safe with me for years. She almost couldn't believe her ears, staring at me in disbelief. As she was seemingly processing my words, I also let her know that I had intended to return it to Albert after knowing that he had been that teenager whom I had met in my childhood, but he had presented it back to me. After hearing all that, she released a deep sigh and stated, "I believe you know what that implied, Candice?"

I nodded at her, and she continued her side of the story. Because of that runaway incident, Aunt Elroy had promised William to give him some minimal freedom to do what he had wished in his life before he would officially take over the role of family head.

In conclusion, Aunt Elroy was unquestionably amazed that William and I had come across each other by chance again and again in different stages of our lives. My response to her was, "Yes, I have long recognized that we are tied by invisible threads that bind us together. Albert has agreed with me too."

Time flew by quickly, and our wedding was about one month away. One afternoon, I massaged Aunt Elroy's right arm as usual, from her elbow to her hand. After that, while she attempted to do the routine exercise, her hand had miraculously reborn right before our eyes. [5] Instantaneously, she broke down and cried. I had never seen her so vulnerable before, but I wept together with her, hugging her with extreme joy and relief.

Of course her hand was still very weak, and it would take some time for her hand to regain strength. So I didn't expect her to be able to write or feed herself yet, but then we had hope for her right leg now.

Almost as soon as Albert learned about the good news, he came to Lakewood to pay us a visit. Aunt Elroy spoke to me when he was with us, "Candice, you're free to go now. Your wedding is coming up, and you should get ready and make yourself beautiful on your big day."

Albert and I could scarcely believe our ears, but she was right. Although my best friends Annie and Patty had done a lot of necessary preparations for me, it was about time I should go to Chicago too.

Then she turned to her nephew, "William, besides hiring another nurse for me, you should also arrange Candice to stay somewhere else temporarily before the wedding. It's not proper for her to live with us in the mansion before the wedding takes place."

Albert concurred with her right away. Next, she told him to get the damascened jewelry box for her, which was sitting on top of her bureau. I had seen that beautifully crafted box many times before. It was decorated with small jewels and Mother of Pearls.

"Candice, this large jewelry box has been passed down for generations, and William will present this to you on the day of your wedding."

"But... I'm not the right person to own such a beautiful and valuable jewelry box!" I exclaimed with reluctance, waving my hands to make my point.

Then Albert laughed. "Candy, of course you are! You can use it for anything you like."

Aunt Elroy agreed with him, saying, "William's mother was the previous rightful owner, but since she passed away shortly after giving birth to William, I have kept it up till now."

Later, she expressed her wish to return to the Chicago mansion. "I don't want to miss the wedding."

Immensely touched, we were rendered speechless, and I began shedding joyous tears before long. Next, Albert thanked his aunt for her blessing. She simply nodded and turned to me, saying, "Candice, I should thank you. I have never seen William so happy in his life until recently."

After she said that, something astounding happened. Albert gave his aunt a bear hug and even kissed her cheek with fondness. Aunt Elroy was visibly shocked at first, but her features softened within seconds. She even gazed at her nephew afterwards, her eyes brimming with emotion. After all, she was acting as his wary guardian for years, watching him grow up from a baby to a man.

Early next morning, when Albert was heading back to Chicago, he said he would arrange George to pick us up as soon as he could find a place for me to stay in the meantime. Then he held me in his arms and gave me a long goodbye kiss. When he reluctantly let go of me, he said he couldn't thank me enough for taking care of his aunt, whose attitude toward us had noticeably changed for better.

"Candy, I can't believe we are getting married soon, and I can hardly wait now," he whispered to my ear before he kissed me one more time.

When he got in his car, I waved at him and exclaimed, "My prince, I can't wait to be your wife!" Delighted at my words, he responded with his lips curving into a full grin, "See you in Chicago soon, my princess!"

On the day Aunt Elroy and I were to return to Chicago, she talked to me in private before George would arrive to pick us up. To my great astonishment, she apologized for forcing me into engagement with Neil back then and whatever had happened in her room later that afternoon.

"During the reception that day, I witnessed how William couldn't take his eyes off you, and when I found out that both of you had disappeared from the party, I determined to do something to stop this nonsense for whatever the cost. Weeks later, when William notified me that you had left Chicago to move back to the orphanage, I thought my goal was achieved and my nephew would sooner or later come to his senses. Obviously, I was wrong. True love does prevail."

Aunt Elroy paused briefly while I remained quiet. Then she gave me a quick glance before she resumed, "I should have known that you both had kept in touch with each other behind the scene. I knew William had invested money into renovating the orphanage and even buying the land where it was located, but I thought it was his way to return your kindness when he had been amnesiac. Other than that, I also noticed that William's eyes brightened whenever you showed up in our family gatherings, such as the grand opening of the hotel in Florida and Archie and Annie's engagement party, but I assumed that he hadn't quite got over you yet and it was just a matter of time."

She stopped here for a moment as if she were absorbed in contemplation. "Now that I looked back, William did dance with you at the wedding reception of Archie and Annie, and not just once. But since he didn't neglect the other young ladies, I was too busy with the guests to pay special attention to you both that night."

A moment of silence fell between us then, and my mind went back to that wedding reception. Although Albert and I had been exchanging long letters with each other already, even I had been surprised that he had come to invite me to dance with him. That had been our first dance, and it had seemed so easy for him to lead me in dancing. As Aunt Elroy had mentioned, being the confident, handsome and dashing host, Albert had also danced with other beautiful ladies of marriageable age in the party. I had hidden my jealousy from him of course, but he had often come back to me after several rounds of dancing with others, either chatting with me or taking me back to the dance floor.

My train of thought was interrupted by Aunt Elroy's soft sigh. "Not everyone gets to find his or her soulmate in life."

"Soulmate? What does that really mean?" I asked frankly.

She explained matter-of-factly, "Candice, you know you have found your soulmate when he understands you like nobody else does. Not only you're physically attracted to him, but emotionally you feel deeply connected with him. The feeling should be mutual, meaning that both of you are compatible with each other without compromise. He will love and cherish you for who you are, so you can be your true self when you're with him. In fact, your soulmate is your companion who complements you and may even motivate you to become a better person."

"Oh, in that case I'm truly blessed to have Albert, and I do hope that he thinks the same-that I'm his soulmate too."

"Well, why don't you ask William yourself? But as far as I can tell, he treasures and loves you, Candice, and he's very happy whenever you're with him. By the way, do you know that William and I had had a heart-to-heart talk the night before he went back to Chicago?"

With a stunned expression on my face, I shook my head as my response. So she started, "I don't know if I had ever had such an honest talk with William before that night. He began by thanking me once again for planning to attend his wedding, something which he had not dreamed of. Then he sincerely expressed his gratitude for my guardianship over the years, which he hadn't appreciated much when he had been younger. He didn't realize how much I had sheltered him from the business world until he became so much more involved himself. Before long, we were lost in reminiscing for some time."

Unexpectedly, she paused to ask me a question, "Candice, has William told you that when he was a teenager, how much he dreaded that his future partner would marry him only because of his wealth and status?"

"No, but he did tell me that he would only marry for love, like his late sister Rosemary."

Aunt Elroy affirmed, "Yes, not only they looked alike, but their personalities were similar even though their aspirations were different. William, being much healthier and physically stronger than Rosemary, is more outgoing and adventurous. They both enjoyed nature, but he loved animals while Rosemary loved flowers, especially roses, and yet they deeply adored each other." She emitted a long sigh after this. I guessed she missed Rosemary too.

Then she continued, "Anyway, before William went back to his bedroom that night, he gave me his heartfelt thanks for accepting you into the family and told me that he considered himself blessed to have you in his life because you loved him for his person. He believed he could never repay your kindness to him. The fact that you were willing to take care of him when he was at his rock bottom, being despised by everybody else, had touched his heart tremendously."

I promptly responded in a soft voice, "No, it should be the other way. I can't repay his kindness to me. I can never thank him enough."

Aunt Elroy appeared very pleased, her lips curling up into a contented smile. At this point, our conversation ended because George had come.

=o=o=o=

When I left the bathroom, wearing my pajamas which matched Albert's and drying my hair with my towel, I was surprised to see Albert reading the morning news while waiting for me in the bedroom.

"I thought you said you would wait for me in the anteroom?"

He winked at me, teasing with a grin, "Someone has certainly spent a long time in shower."

"I'm sorry to keep you waiting," I answered with a sheepish smile.

He gave me an understanding nod and remarked, "It's alright. I'm not going anywhere anyway."

"Well, while I was taking my shower, my mind just got carried away without knowing," I said while sitting down in front of my dresser and picked up my hairbrush.

Albert approached me and stretched his hand out, asking, "Please allow me, Candy."

He liked brushing my hair, which I absolutely loved, so I was more than willing to let him take my hairbrush because he rarely had the leisure to do it. Being a responsible business man, he almost always left early in the mornings to go to work.

I heard him say, "Candy, I love your wet hair look."

"Really?" I replied with delight. It wasn't the first time he said this. Now that I was a married woman, I was not supposed to leave my hair loose, which was what Albert preferred.

While he was gently brushing my hair, he casually asked, "So where did your mind take you earlier, my dear?"

Then I told him. By now, he was done and gestured me to check my reflection in the mirror, so I gave him a smile of approval and began tying my hair back loosely with a ribbon. With his hands on my shoulders, he leaned down to give me a peck of my cheek and said, "Once again, I have to thank you for taking care of my aunt, Candy. Without you, I don't know what would have happened to her."

"Don't mention it, Albert. I truly thank God for giving me the strength and persistence during that tough period."

In fact, about half a year ago, Aunt Elroy could finally walk again using a cane, but she wanted to reside in Lakewood because she loved the tranquility and warmth of that place.

Then he held my hand and suggested, "Shall we open the presents now?"

As we paced toward the anteroom, I broached the subject, "Albert, sometimes I couldn't help pondering this. What if Aunt Elroy forbade us getting married back then? Would we have eloped?"

Shaking his head, he answered my question with a solemn tone, "Candy, don't forget that I'm the family head. This burdensome role can be very stressful at times, but it comes in handy especially when I need to have my own way. Although my aunt was very strict to me when I was a minor, she no longer has power over me ever since I became an adult. Remember I adopted you years ago on my own authority? As much as she disliked the idea, she could not revert my decision, right?"

As I nodded in agreement, he remarked, "In addition, when Archie wanted to marry Annie, wasn't I the one who gave them the permission even though my aunt, Archie's parents and the Leagans were strongly against them? So why couldn't I marry someone I love?"

He paused and stopped his steps, letting his words sink in. For a moment, I stared at him in response until I spoke up, "True... who in the family can really oppose you..."

His mouth curled into a tender smile before he added, looking me in the eyes, "As a matter of fact, when I made up my mind to reveal to you that I was your Prince on the Hill, I was ready to start a serious relationship with you with the intention to marry you. No doubt I could foresee obstacles in our way, but I had confidence that we could overcome those problems together. If I knew there was no way we could get married, I would not have confessed to you on Pony's Hill but rather keep the secret from you-"

Before he finished talking, I practically flung myself onto him, making him fall back a couple of steps. "Whoa!" he exclaimed, wrapping his arms around my back. "What's this all of a sudden?"

"Nothing... I just feel like doing it," I whispered and hugged him with all my might. He lowered his head and rested his chin on the top of my head for a minute before he remarked, "My only worry back then was that you would not accept me."

"Why not? I couldn't find words to describe my euphoria when I knew that the man I loved was actually my prince. I hadn't realized it before then, but it felt so right that I was back to my first love."

We continued holding each other for a while until we decided to get down to business, so we sat down on the sofa in front of the coffee table in the anteroom where Albert had put the gifts. The one from Aunt Elroy came with a warning sign 'Handle with Care', and it was very heavy and bulky, so we cautiously unwrapped it. When we got to see the content, our jaws dropped as we were both stupefied and wordless. It was a miniature world of the forest near the Mountain Lodge in Lakewood, including the lodge, the plants, the animals, the swan boat in the river and the waterfall. The model looked remarkably realistic, and the exquisite flowers scattered about the meadow were made of various precious gemstones.

While we were admiring the delicate details of the model, Albert spoke up to break the silence, "This is such a meaningful gift to us, and we'd better thank Aunt Elroy as soon as possible." I agreed with him wholeheartedly, so we planned to give her a phone call at the Lakewood Villa around noon when she must be there for her lunch.

After Albert put the miniature model in a safe spot, we proceeded to open other gifts. The second gift was from the orphanage, Pure Hearts. Since Mrs. Thompson had passed away, Mr. Spencer took over. I also became highly involved with the operation, doing volunteering work like teaching and fundraising. The kids handmade a craft with many heart shapes, and the biggest two of them partially overlapping with our first names printed. The rest of the heart shapes showed the kids' names.

"Candy, will you inform Mr. Spencer that we are leaving Chicago?"

"Yes I will. I will miss the kids for sure, but above all else, I want to be with you, Albert."

"I need you to support me too, Candy," he said, fondly stroking some wet hair from my face, and pressed his lips against mine. It was a tender and long kiss, which melted my inside.

When our lips parted reluctantly, he teased himself, "I'd better stop now before I run out of control again."

"I would love that, my prince," I hastily responded with a mischievous grin. He didn't say anything in return, but the full smile across his face indicated that he was delighted at my reply.

Just when we were about to open the next present, I suddenly remembered Lucy, who used to help out at Pure Hearts too. "Albert, do you know that Lucy is now a student nurse at St. Joanna? She told me she wanted to follow my path," I finished my question with pride.

He gazed at me for a moment before he asked, "Candy, do you regret not working as a nurse anymore? Ever since we got married-"

I promptly cut him off by giving him a big hug, reassuring him, "Not at all! I'm unbelievably happy now to be married to you, Albert! I won't trade anything for that."

"But you studied so hard for your exams back then," he commented with a sorrowful voice.

I pulled myself away from him and looked straight into his blue orbs. "You're right... I did put in lots of effort then and even got excellent results, but guess what? I was so motivated because Dr. Leonard said I couldn't take care of you at Room 0 unless I could pass the exams."

He immediately took me into his arms and buried his face into my shoulder, mumbling in a muffled voice, "I don't know what else to say now, Candy."

I sighed in contentment and remarked in a comforting tone, "Then don't say anything."

Moments later, we went on unwrapping the present from Pony's Home, which consisted of kids' drawings of the orphanage after the renovation. Miss Pony and Sister Lane also wrote us a long letter to congratulate us and express their gratitude once more.

"Oh, I haven't written to my mothers for a while already. Albert, please remind me later ok? I will write to let them know about our move to London as well."

"Sure, and please pass my regards to them. They have always been very kind to me," he said sincerely.

I nodded and remarked, "In fact, one night when I was writing a long letter to you, they told me that they were very fascinated by our story, from how we had first met by chance on Pony's Hill to how we ended up in love despite coming from entirely different worlds."

"That's true. Who could have thought that the crying baby would eventually become the most significant woman in my life?"

What he said sent us both into another fit of laughter. After we calmed down, we opened the present from Patty and Scott, who gave us a pair of matching wrist watches.

I said, "Albert, I don't think you know this. Patty just got engaged!"

"Is that right? That's great news indeed! I can't wait to congratulate Scott and Patty!" exclaimed Albert with glee. Scott was a mechanical engineer from Massachusetts and about one year younger than Albert. They got along very well because they both liked to build and repair things.

"I know. Can you believe that Annie's baby is due the end of next month? So I paid her a visit last week, and Scott and Patty were there as well. I hadn't seen him happier before."

We had known Scott through Archie. One day, when Archie's car had broken down near his graduate school in Massachusetts, Scott had happened to drop by and helped him out. Despite their age difference, Archie and Scott had soon become good friends because Scott had reminded Archie of Stear for some reason. When Patty and Annie had gone to visit Archie in Massachusetts, Archie had introduced Scott to Patty, and he fell in love with her at first sight. However, Patty had been quite hesitant because she had not felt ready for a new love in her life yet. Scott hadn't given up of course and even moved to Chicago to continue his pursuit of Patty. About half a year later, Patty had somehow found out that Scott's fiancée had been involved in a car accident years ago and got killed. Like Patty, Scott had felt that he could not love again until he had met Patty, so she had become more receptive of a new relationship. That was when their courtship had begun.

Annie and Archie gave us a pair of exquisite crystal swans with a brief note: "Happy Anniversary to Uncle William (just teasing you, Albert) and Candy! Swans are considered a symbol of love because of their lifelong exclusive relationships. You two truly belong together, and we hope to hear good news from you both soon!"

After I read the note aloud, Albert questioned with mock innocence, "What did they mean by good news, Candy?"

With a bashful smile on my face, I tried to distract him, "I forgot to tell you that Archie has hired a nanny already. When he was showing us the decorated nursery in his house, he told us that he was so looking forward to being a father although he was very nervous."

"I think I understand how he feels. It's not easy to be a parent. It's a pity I never got to know my mother, and my father was always occupied and even passed away in his prime time," said Albert wistfully.

So I held his hands in mine, ready to do anything to make him feel better, and said, "Albert, I'm sure you'll be a great father one day."

Regarding me tenderly, he held my hands in his. "You will definitely be a loving mother too, Candy."

I lowered my head and averted his eyes, mumbling, "But..."

"But what?" he briskly asked, frowning with concern due to my sudden change of mood.

A moment of struggle later, I decided to get it off my chest. After all, I promised Albert last night that I would share my burden with him. Trembling, I said, "It's been a year, and I'm still... what if I'm barren, Albert?"

My question caught him off guard because I guessed the idea had never come across his mind. In fact, I could barely get the word out of my mouth, so dreadful was the thought, which had been bothering me since about two months ago. That was when my Happy Maker, Stear's music box had broken. I was glad that Albert had fixed it with no sweat before his trip.

Then I further added, "I'm anxious because you're the only male-". Without delay, he put his finger on my mouth to stop me, lovingly drew me into his embrace and placing his palm on my head to console me. "I know what you're trying to say, but worrying won't solve any issues. Besides, you're very young, and we have plenty of time."

"It's a year already..." I whimpered in his arms, burying my head on his neck.

So he spoke to me in a soothing tone, "Candy, I wanted to marry you because I love you and want to spend the rest of my life with you, not because you can bear children for me."

A whine left my mouth before I knew it, "But I want to have your child, Albert."

From my voice he could sense that I was desperate, so he shuddered slightly. Then I felt two fingers gently lifting my chin up. He trapped my eyes with his beautiful blue ones and said, regret evident in his tone, "It's likely my fault because I'm on business trips a lot, but we will definitely spend more time with each other from now on."

That being said, he leaned forward to place his mouth over mine to give me a gentle, lingering kiss, cupping my face in his warm hands. Amazingly, I felt so loved and comforted; my worries faded away and it seemed nothing else mattered anymore.

When we pulled apart later, I gave him my anniversary present, which was a portrait of both of us. I started taking lessons shortly after our wedding to learn how to draw, and this time I was proud to present my drawing to my husband as his gift. He complimented me on my progress and planned to display it in his office together with my previous childish drawing.

A couple of days after our anniversary, we embarked on our trip to London. Albert had shortlisted several houses for me to choose, and it didn't take me long to find the one I loved. From the terrace, we could not only see a river far away, but also a small rose garden and many daffodils. Therefore, Albert finalized the purchase and would arrange the move.

Then he spent a week just relaxing with me in Scotland just as he had promised. This was like our second honeymoon, and we were practically inseparable, savouring each kiss and each touch. We both felt refreshed enjoying the great outdoors, weather permitting, and reading books or chit-chatting in front of the fireplace in the evenings.

After this well-deserved short vacation, Albert took me around Europe, going from city to city. But he had to work during the day with George, so I went sightseeing myself. This was post-war period after all, and I could see ruins here and there still, but things were noticeably improving.

A few days before we returned to Chicago, Annie gave birth to a beautiful baby girl. They named her Ingrid, and Patty and Scott were asked to be her godparents, which they readily accepted. When we all gathered at their house a week after her birth, we unanimously agreed that Ingrid resembled her father a lot, with the same hair color and sparkling blue eyes. My tears kept coming to my eyes, and all the while Albert never left my side.

When Aunt Elroy was holding baby Ingrid in her arms, her joy was so apparent with her non-stop smiles. Everyone around them was cooing the baby, and Archie bantered with a wide grin, "Don't spoil her rotten, ok?" Even Annie echoed after him.

I figured that Albert was worried about my feelings, so when he pulled me aside in private, I assured him, "Albert, don't get me wrong. I wasn't crying because I was upset. In fact, I'm more than happy for Archie and Annie."

He shook his head and said, "Candy, that's not why I took you away from the crowd. Do you know you look very pale? I know you were not feeling well this morning-"

As if to prove that he was right, I felt so nauseous that I had to dash to the bathroom before he could finish his statement. Aghast, he rushed after me. Rubbing my upper back, he asked, his voice dripping with anxiety, "Shall I call for a doctor?"

As happened this morning, I didn't really throw up, but I could only wave my hands. As a matter of fact, this was just one of the symptoms I had been experiencing since yesterday. With my medical knowledge, I already suspected what was going on, but I didn't want to give anybody false hope.

When I could finally raise my head, a pair of concerned blue eyes greeted me. "Candy, let's go home and rest, ok?" he said as he placed his arm around my shoulder protectively. I didn't want to cause a commotion, but it hurt to see Albert worry about me, so we excused ourselves and went home afterwards.

On the ride home, I could hardly hide my inner joy, but I resolved to check with Dr. Leonard the first thing tomorrow. After knowing that I had missed my period for a week, and together with my other symptoms, he could safely deduce that I was expecting. [6] At that moment, I almost felt like screaming for happiness. God had answered my prayers, and all I needed was to inform Albert at his office.

When he heard the good news from me, he was stunned to say the least. For a moment he appeared frozen in disbelief, and then all of a sudden he held me tight in his arms and kissed me hard like he didn't want to let me go. Later, when he accompanied me all the way to the car where my chauffeur was waiting, he urged me to take good care of myself, but at the same time he told me not to give myself any pressure.

Still, I wasn't entirely optimistic because I knew miscarriage could happen, but God granted me peace, and by the time we were ready to move to London, I was already close to five months pregnant. That was when I started to worry about some other things.

The evening before we moved to London, Albert and I were strolling along the shore by the lake behind the grand Ardlay's mansion one last time, enjoying the glorious sunset together. Sitting on a nice bench overlooking the lake, I placed my head against his shoulder as his arms closed around me. Then I asked him while gently rubbing my belly, "Albert, do you want a daughter or a son?"

He gave me a tender smile, lovingly placing his hand over mine on my bulging abdomen. "It doesn't really matter to me, Candy. Either way, the baby is ours and I will treasure him or her just the same."

I breathed out a long sigh and said, "I do wish the baby is a boy because I want to fulfill my responsibility as the wife of the only male descendant of a prestigious family."

He softly countered, "Don't be silly, Candy. To be honest, I prefer a daughter first so she can take care of her younger sibling just like Rosemary did to me."

"But what if this is our only child?" I asked, almost whimpering.

"So be it. It's fine with me, Candy," he replied. The serenity of his countenance made me feel better already. Then he leaned down to kiss my belly and spoke to our unborn child, "Please tell your mother that I'm blessed to have you both, and I'll not ask for more."

With his hand still on my abdomen, he straightened up to kiss me on my lips. Just then we both felt the baby move for the first time, like he or she was responding to our love. Inevitably, tears filled my eyes, and Albert was so excited as well and wanted to feel it again, but this time he got no luck. He resolved not to give up yet, so he began to sing his favorite Scottish folk song to our baby, splaying his long fingers on my belly. I always liked his singing because he got such a sweet, gentle voice. Hence, I joined him to sing the chorus, and our unborn child gave us our wish before long. At that moment, I felt so blessed to have them both with me and thought to myself, _Albert is right, the gender doesn't matter after all._

Snuggling up to him after that, we discussed baby names. Albert let me pick a girl's name and he would pick a boy's name. I picked 'Rosemary' while he picked 'Anthony' as if we had the same mind, so we flashed each other an understanding smile.

"Albert, if our baby is a boy, he will be called William Anthony Ardlay, right?"

He affirmed, "The first name must always be William as of our family tradition."

Retreating to our bedroom that night, as we lay down cuddling each other in bed, I said, "Albert, no matter what, I pray that our baby will be healthy and happy, and God will grant him or her a soulmate in life, just like me and you."

With a serious face, he nodded. "True. God has blessed us with each other. Life is never perfect, but having you makes my life worth living, Candy. We did go through some ups and downs before, but I'm confident that together we can handle any problem that comes along."

When the falling leaves were everywhere, our son Anthony was born in London. He looked exactly like a mini Albert, perfect and beautiful like an angel, which brought uncontrollable tears to my eyes. My prince was overjoyed to be a father, cradling the baby boy in his arms, unable to believe the little bundle was his son.

"Let's raise our child together, Candy," said Albert in an emotional voice with a glint in his eyes. "It's not easy, but we should do our best so that Anthony will grow up happily with love from both his parents."

"Yes, our son Anthony will get to see us grow old together, and we will see him get married and have a family," I replied in earnest with watery eyes.

Nodding, he urged, "As Miss Pony has said, we don't know what awaits us behind the bend, but let's face the future together, Candy."

We then embraced each other and shared the tears of gratefulness.

THE END

=o=o=o=

**Author's note:**

This is certainly a long chapter, and thanks for reading it! I could have written some more, but I think it's time to give this short story a closure so that I can shift my focus back to writing my long story "Love Never Fails".

Similar to the previous chapter, this chapter is just my imagination based on my interpretation of the manga, the spoilers of the Candy Candy Final Story (CCFS) and the old Candy Candy novel.

Scott, Ingrid and Anthony are my the kilt Albert wore for the wedding, I got my ideas from a website that sells kilts. For those who are more familiar with kilts and its accessories, please feel free to correct me if I was wrong. Thank you in advance!

To me, by the time Albert revealed that he was Prince on the Hill the day Candy returned to Pony's Home, she was in love with him already. Over and over in her private letters to him following that reunion she addressed him as her prince. It was clear that Candy had strong romantic feelings for Albert because any girl in her right mind would not keep calling a man 'my prince' if that wasn't the case.

Besides, their sense of longing for each other was so apparent in their letters. For example, Candy's birthday would come up soon after Albert had revealed that he was her prince, and she openly asked for his holiday as her birthday present such that her prince could stay with her and talk with her a lot, which is so typical for a girl in love. Otherwise, why else did she want his company so much? Not only that, Albert didn't seem surprised at her request either, like it was the most natural thing for her to ask him that, and he had even prepared birthday presents for her in advance to make her happy.

In the CCFS prologue, it said that Candy's life was changed significantly on the day when Annie was adopted by the Brightons, which was also the day Candy met her Prince on the Hill. So the story begins by telling us how little Candy met her prince, the important man in her life.

Then, Mizuki sensei, the author of Candy Candy, put the letter correspondence of Albert and Candy after her return to Pony's Home in the CCFS epilogue. _"An epilogue is a final chapter at the end of a story that often serves to reveal the fates of the characters..." _(copied from wikipedia). Therefore, the story is concluded by telling us that Candy and her prince have fallen in love with each other.

**Footnote:**

[1] For those who are familiar with CCFS and the old Candy Candy novel will know that I have combined them both, although it was obvious that I prefer the old novel way more.

[2] I believe this letter is only in the old Candy Candy novel, but I like it very much. As one Albert fan had mentioned to me, that was a subtle marriage proposal from Albert to Candy because he invited her to travel with him. Below are copied from the spoilers:

Albert wrote in his letter, "... I will have more freedom. Then, I'll set out on a journey again, taking Pouppe along. When I get to it, Candy, will you come with me?"

Candy's reply to him showed her eagerness, "When you go and travel, please take me with you anywhere! If you say no, I'm going with you!"

[3] "I Wanna Grow Old With You" by Westlife (2001).

[4] According to CCFS, Albert wanted to build a new clinic for Dr. Martin to express his gratitude for the kind doctor. Dr. Martin then suggested Albert build a new clinic near Pony's Home, and that was where Candy worked.

[5] I got the idea from reading the blog of a massage therapist about one of the patients-a musician, who suffered a stroke in the middle of his concert and got partially paralyzed as a result. His right hand was stuck like a fist but later recovered.

[6] Pregnancy test was not yet available in that period. Please correct me if I was wrong.

=o=o=o=

Revised: May 25, 2013 (minor changes)


End file.
